My Recruiting Blog

The number of jobs Pittsburgh has to offer declined on a monthly and yearly basis last month.

While the November unemployment rate for Pittsburgh has not yet been released, the State of Pennsylvania's rate decreased from 8.9 percent to 8.5 percent, which is lower than the national unemployment rate of 10 percent. Pittsburgh had a 7.7 percent unemployment rate during October.

The city had a total non-farm employment of 1,127,400 workers during November, according to the U.S. Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics. This is down from 1,128,000 workers during October and a 2.3 percent decrease from last year.

Four industries saw a monthly increase in employment, including: trade, transportation and utilities by 2,700 jobs; financial activities by 200 jobs; education and health services by 1,000 jobs; and government by 600 jobs. Employment in the mining and logging, information and professional and business services industries remained steady at 5,500 jobs, 19,400 jobs and 157,000 jobs, respectively.

Only one industry managed to add jobs on a yearly basis. The education and health services industry employed 237,900 workers during November, up from 236,900 workers during October and a .8 percent increase from last year. Employment in the mining and logging industry remained even over the year.

The manufacturing industry took the biggest hit when compared to last year. The industry employed 87,500 workers during November, down from 87,700 workers during October and a 10.3 percent decrease from last year.

Other industries that saw an over-the-year decrease in employment include:

• construction by 8 percent
• trade, transportation and utilities by 1.9 percent
• information by 4 percent
• financial activities by 2.5 percent
• professional and business services by 2.5 percent
• leisure and hospitality by .8 percent
• other services by 1.3 percent
• government by 1.2 percent

Labels: Jobs Pittsburgh

A new initiative will help create St Louis tech jobs and positions throughout the state.

Gov. Jay Nixon recently introduced the Missouri Science and Innovation Reinvestment Act, a new initiative that will help create stable, ongoing funding to attract and retain high-tech scientific and research jobs throughout Missouri.

The MOSIRA is part of the Governor's Missouri First Initiative, a comprehensive legislative proposal meant to put Missouri residents back to work, educate them for the careers of tomorrow and harness innovation and technology to revolutionize government and business.

"We face tremendous opportunities to transform our economy for the 21st century, and it is vital that we not only bolster our existing high-tech and innovative employers, but also bring more of these cutting edge companies and their 21st century jobs to our state," Nixon said.

"MOSIRA will help us capitalize on the growth of our existing science and technology companies to reinvest in generating further economic growth in the science and innovation industry sectors, which will be crucial to our future Missouri economy," he continued.

In essence, MOSIRA will take a small percentage of state revenue growth from a group of science and innovation companies and use that money to create a funding source to spark growth in research and technology enterprises.

That funding will then be transferred to the Missouri Technology Investment Fund and administered by the Missouri Technology Corporation.

Funding priority will be given to programs designed to:

• Attract top science talent to Missouri
• Commercialize scientific research to create new Missouri-based technology companies
• Recruit and build strategic science infrastructure
• Create a continuum of capital programs to increase access to risk capital for early-stage technology companies created in or recruited to Missouri
• Increase technology-focused entrepreneurial activity in Missouri
• Establish highly-focused workplace development initiatives

Labels: St Louis tech jobs

Those with Denver nursing jobs and healthcare jobs throughout Colorado will benefit from a slew of new proposed bills.

Gov. Bill Ritter recently announced new job-training initiatives meant to strengthen Colorado's workforce, support small businesses throughout the state and maintain a competitive stance among the national and global economy.

The initiatives include three bills that will be introduced during the 2010 legislative session, two of which focus around healthcare-related positions, as well as a CareerReady Colorado Certificate program.

The three bills include:

• The Health Care Jobs for Colorado bill will encourage and provide incentives for healthcare professionals who work in rural and under-served communities, in turn ensuring that residents in those areas have access to comprehensive healthcare services. The measure also will improve existing public and private loan repayment programs and increase the state's primary care workforce.
• The Nurse Training Loan Forgiveness bill will improve the existing CollegeInvest program by extending current eligibility requirements. The measure will increase the number of nurse faculty and the number of new nurses who can be trained each year.
• The Job Retraining Accounts bill introduces accounts that will be used to finance employee education and training. The employer-matched, portable, employee-owned accounts will encourage partnership between workers and employers to increase education productivity and improve recruitment and retention.

The CareerReady Colorado Certificate program, which was piloted earlier this year, will now be available throughout the state. It will provide job seekers with a state-issued credential certifying their skills and abilities, which also will make it easier for employers to find qualified candidates.

"Over the past three years, we've launched some of the most aggressive business- and workforce-development strategies in the country," Ritter said. "While Colorado residents and companies continue to struggle, our strategies are working and our economy is beginning to stabilize.

"We still have a long way to go, and government alone cannot fix the economy," he added. "But we can do our part. We can strengthen partnerships between government, schools and businesses. And we can ensure that job-training efforts match job-creation efforts. That's exactly what we're doing today, and the end result will be good Colorado jobs for hard-working Coloradans and a stronger homegrown workforce for our businesses."

Labels: Denver nursing jobs

More Milwaukee jobs were added during October as the city's unemployment rate continued to decline. Visit http://milwaukee.jobing.com to learn more.

During October, the Milwaukee-Waukesha-West Allis area saw its unemployment rate decrease from 8.5 percent to 8.2 percent, following a decrease from 9.3 percent during September. The area's current rate is lower than the national unemployment rate at the time of 10.2 percent.

The Milwaukee area had a total non-farm employment of 805,700 workers during October, according to the U.S. Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics. This is up from 802,100 workers during September, but a 5.9 percent decrease from last year.

Three industries saw a monthly increase in employment, including: trade, transportation and utilities by 2,200 jobs; education and health services by 2,200 jobs; and government by 3,100 jobs. Employment in the mining and logging and other services industries remained even at 300 jobs and 42,300 jobs, respectively.

No industries managed to add jobs on a yearly basis, as all industries excluding the other services industry saw a decrease in employment. Employment in the other services industry remained even over the year.

The mining and logging industry took the biggest hit when compared to last year. That industry employed 300 workers during October, the same as during September, but a 25 percent decrease from last year.

Other industries that saw an over-the-year decrease in employment include:

• construction by 11.7 percent
• manufacturing by 11.6 percent
• trade, transportation and utilities by 4.8 percent
• information by .6 percent
• financial activities by 4.7 percent
• professional and business services by 13.7 percent
• education and health services by .3 percent
• leisure and hospitality by 7.6 percent
• government by .1 percent

Labels: Milwaukee jobs

A slew of people are applying for available Los Angeles hotel jobs.

The leisure and hospitality industry, specifically hotels and restaurants, has been hit hard by the current economic recession. As fewer people have the money to travel and splurge on dining out, many workers in this industry have been laid off.

So it's not surprising the few hotels that are hiring have seen an influx of applicants. For instance, about 11,000 people applied for 400 job openings at the W Hollywood Hotel & Residences, which are scheduled to open in Hollywood early next year, while about 3,500 people applied for 550 job openings at the new Ritz-Carlton Los Angeles.

John Husing, an independent economist with Economics & Politics, Inc., told the Los Angeles Times that the high number of hotel job applicants in Southern California reflects the high number of workers with limited education searching for positions in the service sector.

He said 45.5 percent of those 25-years and older in Los Angeles do not have a college education and are therefore limited to blue-collar or service work. While these workers have traditionally been supported by jobs in other industries, such as construction, manufacturing and cargo, those industries have seen an even bigger decrease in employment than the hotel sector.

"When something opens up in one of the service sectors that doesn't require a heavy level of education, it's not surprising that so many people would show up," Husing said.

As recent labor market statistics show, the Los Angeles area could certainly use the additional jobs, especially in the leisure and hospitality industry.

The Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale area's leisure and hospitality industry employed 385,600 workers during October, according to the U.S. Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics. This is down from 386,100 workers during September and a 2.7 percent decrease from last year.

Labels: Los Angeles hotel jobs

One government organization is creating thousands of Clearwater jobs and positions throughout the Tampa Bay area.

The U.S. Census Bureau recently announced that it will hire about 5,000 temporary employees in the Tampa Bay area to work on the 2010 census. The bureau is already recruiting for the positions, which are expected to last between five and 10 weeks.

The bureau has opened a total of five field offices in the Tampa Bay area, including two in Tampa, one in St. Petersburg, one in Clearwater and one in Brooksville. Each office is expected to hire about 1,000 workers.

Depending on the job they will perform, workers can expect to earn anywhere from $9 per hour to $16 per hour, with pay in the Brooksville office averaging $11 per hour, pay in the St. Petersburg and Clearwater offices averaging $13.25 per hour and pay in the Tampa office averaging $14.50 per hour.

The majority of workers will be responsible for visiting area homes to check the number of people in each residence and keep track of other demographic information. However, the bureau notes, employees also will be working for their own neighborhoods.

"We hire locally, and an accurate count means a fair distribution of money for your schools, road, neighborhood improvements and elderly care in your community," Marilia Matos, associate director of field operations for the Census Bureau, said.

The census itself is conducted every 10 years and is used to divide about $400 billion in federal funds to communities.

Based on recent figures, the Tampa Bay area could certainly use the additional jobs. Even though the area's unemployment rate has begun to decline, it remains well above the national average as more jobs are lost.

During October, the Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater area saw its unemployment rate decrease from 11.8 percent to 11.7 percent, following an increase from 11.4 percent during September. Despite the decrease, the area's rate is still higher than the national unemployment rate of 10.2 percent.

The Tampa Bay area had a total non-farm employment of 1,157,200 workers during October, according to the U.S. Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics. This is down from 1,158,000 workers during September and a 4.8 percent decrease from last year.

Labels: Clearwater jobs

A higher percentage of Arizona state jobs have been lost than that in any other state throughout the country.

A recent study from the Economic Policy Institute found that Arizona has lost the highest proportion of jobs in the nation, meaning that while other states have lost a higher number of jobs, those losses constitute a smaller percentage of the state's total economy.

Since the current economic recession began in December 2007, Arizona has lost 265,000 jobs, or 9.9 percent of the state's employment. The majority of those job losses have been in the construction industry, which has decreased by 45 percent since June 2006.

During October alone, Arizona saw its unemployment rate increase from 9.1 percent to 9.3 percent. Despite that slight increase, the state's current rate is still lower than the national unemployment rate of 10.2 percent.

Arizona had a total non-farm employment of 2,409,000 workers during October, according to the U.S. Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics. This is up from 2,406,800 workers during September, but a 6.9 percent decrease from last year.

The state's construction industry has continued to lose jobs on a monthly and yearly basis. The industry employed 133,700 workers during October, down from 136,400 workers during September and a 24.2 percent decrease from last year.

According to an article by Examiner, much of the blame for the current employment situation in Arizona lies with the state government and other political leaders.

"Rather than invest in education, job creation, and home-grown industries - like solar power - during boom times, the Republican-controlled state legislature offers tax cuts to businesses," the article notes. "In bust times, what do they do?

"They cut education (making Arizona less competitive in the long term)," the article continues. "Cut social services. Cut financial support to cities. And cut anything else they can think of in order to avoid raising revenue. The thought of increasing revenue by relinquishing previous tax cuts is not even on their radar."

Labels: Arizona state jobs

A new medical center could help to create thousands of Nashville jobs TN.

Officials recently announced the location for the proposed Nashville Medical Trade Center, which is being touted as a major strong point for the local economy. Aside from construction jobs that will be created to complete the project, the medical center also is expected to result in the creation of 2,700 permanent jobs.

The $250 million project is expected to attract 150,000 new visitors to the Nashville area each year. Developers are planning to add 12 stories to the existing Nashville Convention Center and use that facility to house the medical center.

Although local and state government officials have agreed to the plan, the decision is not yet final. According to the Nashville Business Journal, the plan will depend on whether the convention center will be replaced with a $585 million Music City Center to be located at a new location.

While the Medical Trade Center would be privately funded, it could still receive aid from existing state programs, such as the FastTrack Infrastructure Development Program that provides funding for public improvements needed to create new jobs and business investment.

Once completed, the medical center will include permanent showrooms for 600 to 1,000 healthcare equipment manufacturers, training facilities, a broadcast center and 120,000-square-feet of exhibit space for trade shows.

It is expected that Crow Holdings and CNL Lifestyle Properties will fund the project through cash investments and financing. The medical center is being designed by Nashville-based Gresham, Smith & Partners and construction will be managed by Turner's local office.

If the proposal is finalized, construction on the medical center could begin as early as mid-2010, with the facility to open as early as the beginning of 2013. Those are tentative dates, however, as developers have yet to announce a full time line and plan to earn LEED Silver certification for the project.

Labels: Nashville jobs TN

As the state an national unemployment rates increased, more City of Austin jobs (Click here) were added last month.

Although the Austin-Round Rock area's October unemployment rate has not yet been released, Texas as a whole saw its unemployment rate increase from 8.2 percent to 8.3 percent last month, following an increase from 8 percent during September. Despite the increase, this rate is still lower than the national unemployment rate of 10.2 percent.

The Austin area had a total non-farm employment of 780,700 workers during October, according to the U.S. Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics. This is up from 774,700 workers during September, but a .4 percent decrease from last year.

Six industries saw a monthly increase in employment, including: trade, transportation and utilities by 1,000 jobs; information by 100 jobs; financial activities by 100 jobs; professional and business services by 300 jobs; education and health services by 900 jobs; and government by 4,100 jobs. Employment in the other services industry remained steady at 32,400 jobs.

At the same time, six industries managed to see a yearly increase in employment, including: financial activities by 2.5 percent; professional and business services by 1 percent; education and health services by 4 percent; leisure and hospitality by 2 percent; other services by 2.9 percent; and government by 1.7 percent.

The manufacturing industry took the biggest hit when compared to last year. That industry employed 50,900 workers during October, down from 51,000 workers during September and an 11 percent decrease from last year.

In addition:

• The mining, logging and construction industry employed 44,000 workers during October, down 300 jobs from September and a 7 percent decrease from last year.
• The trade, transportation and utilities industry employed 136,100 workers during October, up from 135,100 workers during September, but a 2.6 percent decrease from last year.
• The information industry employed 19,900 workers during October, up from 19,800 workers during September, but a 3.9 percent decrease from last year.

Labels: City of Austin jobs