December 22, 2011

Holiday gift list: New confidence, new job

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This is a week of making lists (checked twice, of course) and looking forward to a new year of possibilities. We seem to be doing well with the gift list, according to the latest figures for retail sales and other general consumer confidence indicators. But on the future-outlook front, most job seekers are understandably not feeling the same holiday cheer.

To the Grinches who are mired in a recessionary mentality, I offer this: 'Tis the season to shop for a new job.

For workers who lived through the darkest days of the Great Recession, this may be an uncomfortable proposition. Over the last three years, many Puget Sound-area professionals clung desperately to the few jobs that were available, whether they liked them or not, for fear of never finding another decent job to pay the bills. Following your heart and switching careers in midstream seemed liked folly -- a conviction that still holds true for many today.

But as the calendar approaches 2012, the region is seeing some of the best economic news in years. Here's a recent sample:

• According to preliminary reports from the Employment Security Department (ESD), the state added 12,100 new jobs in November, the largest one-month gain in four years, and 44,600 jobs since November 2010. These increases came in virtually every job sector, except for government and education. Unemployment in Washington state, fell from 9.1 percent in October to 8.7 percent last month. In Seattle, the rate dropped from 8.5 percent to 8.2 percent during the same period.


• At the same time, the number of Washingtonians collecting unemployment benefits has finally begun to subside. After ESD processed 470,000 jobless claimants in 2009 and a record-high 503,000 people in 2010, that figure dropped 12 percent to just 440,000 people this year. Also, the average length of time people claimed unemployment benefits fell from 42.2 weeks in 2010 to about 36.2 weeks this year. These are not exactly stellar numbers, but at least they're moving in the right direction.


• Earlier this month, the Economic and Revenue Forecast Council said that employment in Washington state should recover at a 1.2 percent pace in 2012 and 1.9 percent in 2013. This growth is still too slow to be called a healthy recovery, but these rates are slightly faster than the predicted job-growth percentages for the rest of the country. Much of this growth will come from expected new hires at Boeing and Microsoft, and also via the region's strong export market.

With sustained growth comes confidence; more confidence leads to more hiring. So, if you've been in a job that is not entirely fulfilling, this coming lull between Christmas and New Year's may be the best time in the last four years to tap into your network and start sending feelers out for positions that are more meaningful. The job leads you find next week may be the best stocking-stuffers of all this season.

So to all Career Center Blog readers, best wishes for a warm and happy holiday season. Good luck and good hunting!

Randy Woods writes about job-search tools, networking techniques and other tips to help you land your dream job.

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Boeing, economy, finding your passion, holidays, Microsoft, networking

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stocking stuffers | April 21, 2012 12:25 PM | Reply

Hopefully jobs continue to improve going into this Christmas holiday season. Its a shame that 1 in 7 people now are on food stamps. Would much rather find those jobs leads as a stocking stuffer for those that need it.

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