Nancy Collamer, Next Avenue

I just attended the annual Indeed.com conference in Austin, Texas — The Human Side of Hiring — to learn the latest labor market data and trends from the world’s leading job-search engine. My key takeaway for job hunters? It’s a prime time to be looking for work, and the electronic tools to find jobs are better than ever.

Indeed’s economists and analysts enjoy access to a goldmine of data — over 90 million resumés, 20 million job postings and 450 million salary data points. To my mind, that information, combined with insights from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, provides the most accurate picture possible of what’s happening in the job market and what to expect in the future.

How Job Hunters Can Leverage 3 Labor Market Trends

Here are the three big labor market trends I heard at the Indeed.com conference, plus tips on how to leverage them to find a job:

1. Health care occupations continue to experience fiery growth. As I’ve noted in earlier posts, health care jobs are hotter than ever. As the population ages, the demand for health care workers, such as home health care aides, physical therapists and occupational therapists continues to grow.

My tips: There are two ways to tap into the health care market without investing a lot in training: First, look for ways to transfer your skills into a health care or elder care setting. For example, assisted living facilities need receptionists, program directors, bookkeepers and maintenance workers. If you prefer to be outdoors, you might want to take advantage of the projected growth in demand for ambulance drivers.

Second, consider taking a short-term certificate program through your local community college to get quickly certified as an allied health professional such as a phlebotomist, physical therapy aide or pharmacy technician.

2. Information technology (IT) jobs continue to be exceedingly difficult to fill. Like the two Indeed conferences I attended before, the employers I spoke with this time lamented their challenges finding and keeping qualified tech people. That’s no surprise. Seven of Indeed’s Top 10 Jobs of 2017 are in computer science.

My tip: If you’d like to transition into IT, but don’t want to invest the time or money in a computer science degree, consider a short-term coding boot camp instead. In an Indeed survey of over 1,000 HR managers and technical recruiters, a whopping 72% said they consider bootcamp grads to be just as prepared, and just as likely to perform at a high level, as computer science grads. Just be aware that bootcamps are not regulated or accredited, so use a resource like Coursereport.com to vet your options before plunking down any money.

3. More people are searching for flexible work. According to Indeed’s report, Targeting Today’s Job Seeker, searches for flexible work in the U.S. soared by 58% between the end of 2014 and the end of 2016.

Many boomers who want to work past the traditional age of 65 are especially interested in flexible hours and working from home. As of late 2015, 24% of employed 55- to 75-year-olds were in alternative work arrangements.

My tip: Search specifically for flexible jobs at aggregator sites. For instance, check out the “Job Type” advanced-search filters on Indeed to look for contract, temporary and part-time positions.

One Cool Tool

Finally, I wanted to mention a cool Indeed tool for job hunting: Company Reviews. Indeed.com has over 15 million of them, more than any other site. So whether you want to compile a list of potential job targets, research salaries or prep for a job interview, the Company Reviews are a great place to start. You can also post questions about a company’s job interview process and other queries in its Q+A section.

Here’s an example: If you’re interested in working at Costco, you can research its annual salaries (approximately $20,295 for Meat Wrapper; $124,057 for Database Administrator) learn about the company’s generous benefit offerings (even for part-timers) and discover why the chain earns high marks for work-life culture.

My tip: To access the reviews and salary data, simply perform a job search (you can link to reviews from the company page) or go directly to the Best Places to Work page and search from there.

Article Source:
https://www.forbes.com/sites/nextavenue/2017/05/19/the-3-big-labor-market-trends-for-job-hunters/#1db91e542dd1

Job Hunting Tips For 2017 – FORBES
By Karsten Strauss

The way we go about getting jobs has changed. Through technology and the networks that offer more intel on our prospective employers, we are better prepared than ever to find the right career path.

The latest generation of job-seekers is also different, and not only in how it approaches the task of finding work, but in its philosophy and attitude.

To get a better sense of the state of job hunting – and how it will likely evolve – FORBES spoke with Janice Clements-Skelton, chief human resources officer with EBI Consulting and a member of the Society for Human Resource Management’s Special Expertise Panel.

Finding the right occupation is important, she argues, not just for scoring a paycheck in an expensive world, but for career happiness. “You, at 22, are going to work, in all likelihood, for 50 years,” warns Clements-Skelton. “Make sure you love it.”

The New Job Hunters

“There is a fearlessness about this generation,” says Clements-Skelton. “They are risk-takers, they are willing the try something new, they are willing to punch above their weight.”

Younger people looking for work today also have a different outlook on failure, she said, in that they are more willing to learn from failure and do not see it as a source of shame that would forever stain their resumes. “I see a generation that has come into the workforce and has been made bolder through the use of technology and information.”

Because job seekers have more access to intel – through LinkedIn, Glassdoor and other such sites – they simply know more about companies they are contemplating working for and have the power to contact employees of those firms. “Because of that,” says Clements-Skelton, “The interview process has become more collaborative and much more transparent.”

Is It Time To Find Something New?

One important element in a job search process is knowing, first of all, when it’s the right time to look for a new job. To Clements-Skelton, that means asking yourself several questions: Do you feel like you are growing in your role? Do you have the type of relationship with your manager that you want to have? And, do you see a career path laid out before you? “If you have an honest conversation in those three areas, It’s pretty easy to figure out whether you’ve hit a rough patch that you can work through, or if it is time to move on.”

If you identify discontent in one or more of these areas, be aware that you might be able to rectify your situation by speaking with your manager or HR rep. If you do so and still feel unhappy, then you need to start the search process.

To that end, Clements-Skelton provides some guidance in the tips below.

• As it always has been, networking is key. The difference now, of course, is that there are tools to do it. An internal referral or even a LinkedIn introduction can set you apart from the pack.

• Social Media is important for job candidates. If you are not in a confidential search, posting to your social networks that you are looking, and what you are looking for, is an important form of networking.

• Organizations still post to job sites. While LinkedIn, Monster and Career Builders are still relevant, Indeed.com scrapes corporate web sites, so look there too. Don’t ignore, ZipRecruiter, Simply Hired and Mighty Recruiter.

• Cold Calling is an option. If you have identified one or more organizations, that you believe offer the ideal work and environment, but they do not have a position posted, you can cold call. Using publicly available information, or your network for an introduction, you can send your resume and a cover letter requesting a call or visit to learn more about the company and to introduce yourself for future consideration. Many businesses will make “opportunity hires” when they meet a great person and know they will have a need, but don’t have an open position quite yet.

Sending Your Application

• Your resume must be flawless: spelling, grammar and accuracy still matter and can be the difference between being screened for the position and being screened out of consideration.

• The Cover Letter is not dead, but it looks different than it used to. A brief, meaningful, unique cover letter will get attention. Recruiters want to know that you actually read the job posting and believe that you are a fit, not that you are applying based on a key word search.

Vetting A Job Offer

When you do receive a job offer, it’s important to understand the compensation and benefits packages that employers offer, such as…

1. Base salary or hourly rate and the possibility for overtime pay

2. Any bonus structure or signing bonus

3. Tuition reimbursement and professional development costs

4. 401K match

5. Relocation assistance

6. Housing, transportation, meals

• On-line salary data can be useful in determining if you have received a “market rate” offer. Sites like, Glassdoor, Salry.com and PayScales can help in your research, but because they rely on candidates reporting their salary, do tend to run about 10% higher than reality.

• Making a connection with the people you will be working for and with, will affect how much you like, and how well you do in your job. In the best fits, candidates report an ease in communicating and a sense of shared vision. If your conversations with folks at the hiring company were awkward, or understanding was difficult, this may not be the right role for you.

• Going back to your original list from preparing for a search, does this offer provide good work, with good people, in a good environment for you? Answer those questions for yourself.

Hot Skills And Industries

Right now, says Clements-Skelton, one of the most in-demand or beneficial skills a job applicant can have is some level of coding or understanding of software language. “There’s virtually no limit to what somebody who can do some basic programming can do in the workplace,” she said. “Because it’s not just for engineering anymore. It has invaded marketing and finance and HR—we’re all working on databases. We’ve turned into a workforce dependent upon databases, so having any kind of technical savvy there is going to enhance your career.”

Engineering, as an industry, is hot, says Clements-Skelton. Mechanical engineering, as a job, is in high demand. The technical demands of many engineering jobs are starting to blur the lines between white and blue collar workers.

Another space to watch is healthcare, especially as it pertains to the Baby Boomer generation, “Everything from home healthcare to skilled planning to housing,” and even financial planning for retirees or those whose careers have slowed.

The Future Of Job Hunting

Job seekers have never been as empowered as they are now, given the ease of research and the easy access to professional networks. This is leading, says Clements-Skelton, to a reality in which they can, with a few simple clicks, apply for numerous jobs within a small time frame. Since it’s so simple to apply for work, it’s harder to ascertain from simple applications who wants the job more. “Going back eight or nine years, there was a natural hindrance to applying—you had to really want it,” she explained. “You had to know what you were talking about, you had to understand the job, you had to write the cover letter—there was an intentionality about applying that we’ve lost.”

That makes life harder for recruiters, who are forced to deal with a higher volume of applicants that can, with the tough of a button, hurl reams of resume and qualification data at them. That will change the way they post jobs in the future. “We’re going to find our job descriptions and postings becoming increasingly narrow because it’s the only way to try and reduce the applicant pool.” That, says Clements-Skelton, could cause the individual in the workforce to have fewer competencies and be more specialized, i.e. less able to be fluid and adaptable to multiple tasks.

Original Source:
https://www.forbes.com/sites/karstenstrauss/2017/03/07/job-hunting-tips-for-2017/#2f9cca3c5c12

U.S. Job Growth Picks Up the Pace, but Wages Lag Behind
By PATRICIA COHEN, New York Times (NYTimes.com)

Automobile sales may be slowing, e-commerce is putting the squeeze on bricks-and-mortar stores, and overall economic growth is limp. But the labor market has nevertheless managed to charge ahead.

Employers added an impressive 222,000 jobs in June, the government reported on Friday. Although the jobless rate ticked up slightly to 4.4 percent, it was because some people who had dropped out of the labor force were lured back.

But the hunger for workers and mounting complaints of labor shortages have raised a vexing question: Why isn’t the heightened demand for workers driving up pay?

The Federal Reserve pointed to that conundrum in the updated report on the American economy it sent to Congress on Friday. “Despite the broad-based strength in measures of employment,” it said, “wage growth has been only modest, possibly held down by the weak pace of productivity growth in recent years.”

The Fed’s report reflected its overall confidence in the country’s economic direction, which has led it to begin raising interest rates for businesses and consumers after years of holding them near zero to encourage investment and risk-taking. After increasing its benchmark rate last month, the Fed is expected to do so at least once more before the year’s end.

One of its aims is to head off any inflation that might result from a tight job market that prompts employers to offer higher pay to get the workers they need. Yet prices have been rising at a slow pace, and sluggish wage growth suggests that the fear may be premature.

“The payroll number is well above expectations,” said Jim O’Sullivan, chief United States economist for High Frequency Economics. “It’s pretty clear that the trend in employment growth is strong enough to keep the unemployment rate trending down.” Revisions to earlier estimates brought the monthly average gain since April to 194,000. But year-over-year wage growth plodded along at 2.5 percent.

“The wage numbers are certainly weaker than expected,” Mr. O’Sullivan said, “so it keeps alive the whole debate about the relationship between slack and inflation, and how far the Federal Reserve should allow the unemployment rate to fall.”

June was the eighth anniversary of the end of the recession, when the economy hit bottom, with employers shedding hundreds of thousands of workers and the jobless rate more than double what it is today. But many workers have yet to fully benefit from the expansion.

“This is not a market we have typically seen,” said Michael Stull, senior vice president at the staffing company Manpower North America. “We have not before seen unemployment drop, low participation rates and wages not move. That tells you something’s not right in the labor market.”

Employers are very aware that the pool of workers is shrinking and they are rethinking traditional qualifications like length of experience, Mr. Stull said.

“Employers will take on hard-working, reliable workers even if they don’t have an opening,” he said.

At the same time, he said that workers were “pushing back a little bit about driving an hour for a $10-an-hour job at a distribution center on the outer rim of the city.”

“You need a car for that,” Mr. Stull said, “and you can’t have a car on $10 an hour.”

That’s a familiar problem to Tom Thompson, owner of Star Cleaning Systems in Columbus, Ohio. He is looking to add two or three part-time workers to his 20-member staff.

“Very few people show up for interviews, and if they do, they don’t show up for the job,” Mr. Thompson said. “I’m spending 80 to 90 percent of my time recruiting. I triple-book appointments for interviews, and I’m lucky if I get one person to show up.”

He is offering $9.25 an hour to start, with bonuses and increases for workers who stick around. Running a new company, he said, he cannot afford to pay significantly more.

Nearby distribution centers for big companies like Amazon are sucking up most of the available labor, Mr. Thompson said. “I sometimes wish there was actually a higher unemployment rate,” he said.

Like Star Cleaning, Rooforia Home Exteriors in Omaha often finds customers through Thumbtack, an online marketplace for hiring people to complete tasks. These days it is the workers who are tougher to find.

“We did everything we could to recruit people and had not one application,” said Rooforia’s owner, Sarah M. Smith.

She is depending on guest-worker visas to fill openings for the season, which runs from the spring through November. “It’s hard work in Nebraska,” Ms. Smith said. “We have hot summers, and you’re on a black asphalt roof.”

At $17 an hour, she said, “the pay is fair.”

“We get a lot of people saying the visa program is taking jobs away from Americans,” Ms. Smith said, “but in reality, they’re not taking the jobs because there is no one even willing to do the jobs.”

“We had one person we recruited,” she said. “He didn’t even show up the next day.”

Patrick Bass, chief executive of Thyssenkrupp North America, part of a German multinational conglomerate, said his company was increasingly relying on methods common in Germany like apprenticeships, partnerships with colleges, and internships.

“We’re willing to invest in the people and bring them in and train them,” Mr. Bass said. “But for the basic-skill job, we’re seeing a higher turnover rate than normal. People are job shopping a bit, because they can. They’re trying different things to see what they like.”

While the government’s statistics offer a bird’s-eye perspective, hiring is essentially local. “Even in an era of low national unemployment, with recent jobs reports showing the national unemployment rate ticking down close to 4 percent, jobs are not always available and not everyone who wants work can find it,” Martha Ross, a fellow at the Metropolitan Policy Program at the Brookings Institution, noted in her blog. “There is no one-size-fits-all approach to help people prepare for and find jobs.”

Professional services showed a healthy gain in jobs last month, possibly reflecting the hiring of new college graduates. Other sectors that showed substantial gains included health care, social assistance and food services.

Reviews of the economy tend to reflect political affiliations, with Republicans more optimistic since the election than Democrats. Ideology aside, however, uncertainty about federal policy may be weighing on the economy. Businesses reported a burst of optimism after President Trump’s election, in part because of expectations that the new administration would enact fiscal measures like tax cuts. But that buoyant outlook is fading.

“This cautious approach to investment may in part reflect uncertainty about the policy environment,” Stanley Fischer, the Fed’s vice chairman, told an audience in Vineyard Haven, Mass., on Thursday. “Providing more clarity on the future direction of government policy is highly desirable.”

Representative Kevin Brady, Republican of Texas, the chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, said in a statement,“This new report shows positive gains: Job creation came in higher than expected and the labor force grew,” but he added, “We have a lot more work to do.”

Much of Mr. Trump’s pro-business agenda remains stalled in Congress. Although Republicans control the White House and both legislative chambers, they have so far been unable to agree on a final budget, a new health care plan, a tax overhaul or an infrastructure program.

“This is an unprecedented level of political uncertainty,” said William E. Spriggs, chief economist for the A.F.L.-C.I.O. “That is creating a drag on the economy.”

Juanita Duggan, chief executive of the National Federation of Independent Businesses, said, “Small-business owners seem to be in a holding pattern while they wait to see what Congress will do with taxes and health care.”

Original Article Source With Supporting Metrics / Charts:
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/07/business/economy/jobs-report-june-unemployment.html?mcubz=3

10 Jobs With The Fastest Pay Growth – Inc. Magazine
By Christina DesMarais

The rate at which a person’s salary increases over time can be a big motivator (or demotivator, depending on the numbers). Glassdoor, an online job review and search platform, recently released its latest Local Pay Report which applies an algorithm to millions of salaries collected from U.S. workers to estimate near-real-time trends. The good news: median annual base pay is up 2.0 percent from a year ago to $51,556. Here are the 10 jobs the report says have the highest pay growth.

1. Truck Driver

Consider how Amazon is crushing brick and mortar retailers. It makes sense that the people helping get things to doorsteps are incentivized.

Median Base Pay: $52,079

Year Over Year Growth: 5.7%

2. Barista

No one other than owners and investors are getting rich serving people coffee — certainly not baristas. Nonetheless, a pay raise feels good to the folks making sure the world is happily caffeinated.

Median Base Pay: $24,194

Year Over Year Growth: 5.7%

3. Insurance Agent

Calamities and accidents aside, this paper-pushing profession can be thankless. A bigger paycheck can’t hurt.

Median Base Pay: $43,652

Year Over Year Growth: 5.7%

4. Recruiter

Unemployment is down, meaning recruiters have to work harder to find talented workers who may not be actively looking for a job.

Median Base Pay: $50,483

Year Over Year Growth: 5.2%

5. Bank Teller

Other than the hours, holidays and air-conditioned environs these people enjoy, there’s not a lot to get excited about handling other people’s money.

Median Base Pay: $28,636

Year Over Year Growth: 4.9%

6. Restaurant Cook

These hard-working individuals spend a lot of their time in the weeds and certainly deserve every dollar of their compensation.

Median Base Pay: $28,628

Year Over Year Growth: 4.7%

7. Pharmacy Technician

This job involves stocking and retrieving medication, creating labels and inputting prescription and insurance information into a computer.

Median Base Pay: $30,592

Year Over Year Growth: 3.7%

8. Cashier

Retailers are starting to prepare for the upcoming holiday season, resulting in pay growth nearly twice the U.S. average.

Median Base Pay: $27,701

Year Over Year Growth: 3.7%

9. Producer

These creatives are responsible for pulling together all sorts of media content, often under heavy deadline pressure.

Median Base Pay: $52,935

Year Over Year Growth: 3.5%

10. Server

There’s no shortage of server positions available and if you want to get a job bringing people their food, you can probably get one. Glassdoor lists nearly 68,000 of these jobs on its platform.

Median Base Pay: $33,654

Year Over Year Growth: 3.3%

Article Source:
https://www.inc.com/christina-desmarais/10-jobs-with-the-fastest-pay-growth.html

CNNMoney/PayScale’s top 100 careers with big growth, great pay and satisfying work.

1.   Mobile Applications Developer  $97,100 19%

2.   Risk Management Director  $131,000 7%

3.   Landman  $93,600 7%

4.   Product Analyst  $74,900 19%

5.   Information Assurance Analyst  $98,900 18%

6.   Quality Assurance Coordinator (RN) $69,000 16%

7.   Clinical Applications Specialist $77,000 21%

8.   Hospital Administrator $120,000 17%

9.   Database Analyst $70,100 11%

10. Finance & Administration Director $97,300 7%

11. Auditing Director $141,000 11%

12. Portfolio Manager$118,000 30%

13. Information Technology Director $128,000 15%

14. Webmaster $61,200 27%

15. Real Estate Development Manager $111,000 8%

16. Quality Management Director $109,000 17%

17. Management Analyst $71,400 14%

18. Marketing and Sales Director $114,000 7%

19. Employee Relations Specialist $62,300 7%

20. Actuary $132,000 18%

21. Government Affairs Director $108,000 7%

22. Information Technology Operations Manager $97,200 15%

23. Project Control Specialist $89,600 14%

24. Operations Project Manager $87,100 7%

25. Customer Success Manager $98,100 10%

26. Community Relations Manager $63,600 10%

27. Certified Financial Planner $91,600 30%

28. Continuous Improvement Manager $94,700 7%

29. E-Learning Specialist $64,900 8%

30. Brand Manager $89,800 9%

31.  Dean of Students $87,700 9%

32. Business Development Manager $96,000 9%

33. Video Game Designer $81,600 13%

34. Technical Services Manager $96,700 15%

35.  IT Training Specialist $67,400 8%

36.  Supply Chain Management Director $134,000 7%

37.  Transportation Engineer $80,400 8%

38.  IT Business Analyst $83,000 21%

39.  User Experience Researcher $106,000 19%

40.  Internal Auditor $66,200 11%

41.  Analytics Manager $108,000 30%

42.  Social Media Manager $57,400 9%

43.  Operations Director $108,000 7%

44.  Dentist$151,000 18%

45. Radiologist $316,000 15%

46.  Career Counselor $46,900 8%

47.  Front End Developer/Engineer $81,000 27%

48.  Biostatistician $91,800 34%

49.  Accounting & Financial Reporting Director $126,000 7%

50.  IT Security Director $147,000 15%

51.   Certified Public Accountant $81,400 11%

52.  Database Administrator $93,800 11%

53.  Financial Analysis Manager $106,000 12%

54.  Music Teacher $52,100 %

55.  Instructor, Postsecondary/Higher Education $50,900 12%

56.  Videographer $49,600 12%

57.  User Interface Designer $73,800 27%

58.  Associate Director, Non-Profit Organization $68,100 7%

59.  Product Owner $103,000 15%

60.  Corporate Paralegal $71,500 8%

61.  Tutor $51,200 7%

62.  Marine Engineer or Naval Architect $115,000 9%

63.  Technical Support Engineer $70,600 13%

64.  Programmer Analyst $82,300 21%

65.  Patient/Health Educatorv$50,600 12%

66.  Proposal Manager $87,600 7%

67.  Education Program Manager $58,700 7%

68.  Content Strategist $84,400 19%

69.  Marketing Communications Director $92,500 7%

70.  Applications Engineer $81,900 19%

71.  Training & Development Specialist $62,500 8%

72.  Environmental Health & Safety Coordinator $66,500 11%

73.  General Practice Physician $179,000 10%

74.  Nursing Instructor $64,700 19%

75.  Forester $61,800 8%

76.  Sales Account Manager $80,800 7%

77.  Area Operations Manager $89,500 7%

78.  Customer Service Director $106,000 7%

79.  Financial Services Product Manager $113,000 9%

80.  Software Developer $96,600 13%

81.  Petroleum Engineer $152,000 10%

82.  Division General Manager$135,000 7%

83.  Revenue Manager $74,000 7%

84.  Clinical Research Associate $76,000 8%

85.  Implementation Manager $87,600 15%

86.  Nursing Home Director $95,100 17%

87.  Statistician $95,100 34%

88.  Administrative Director $82,600 8%

89.  Pharmacy Director $144,000 17%

90.  Asset Manager $95,600 12%

91.  Clinical Services Director $80,400 17%

92.  Environmental Specialist $69,400 11%

93.  Nursing Manager $84,900 17%

94.  Accounting Analyst $58,500 10%

95.  Environmental Engineer $81,500 12%

96.  Engagement Manager $115,000 7%

97.  Civil Engineer $81,200 8%

98.  Occupational Therapist $79,8002 7%

99.  User Experience Designer $85,900 13%

100. Anesthesiologist $335,000 21%

For more information on each occupation, visit the original source at CNN Money where you can follow each link on the list.
https://money.cnn.com/pf/best-jobs/2017/list/index.html