Posts tagged with “unemployment”

Rewind to four years ago. I was a new job seeker trying to figure out what the heck a job search was (actually, I was really just trying to figure out how to get a job, but no one was falling all over themselves to offer me a job). I knew about job boards, of course, and figured that's where my job leads would come from. I knew I needed a resume (hard to apply to a job without a resume). I knew I should network (ugh). But that's about it - as a job seeker that seemed to be all I had that I could call a "tool."

Today I have a better understanding of the job search, and tools you could use. Here are tools I recommend:

Severance, as defined by the American Heritage Dictionary is: "The state or condition of being severed or separated, as in the ending of a relationship." Nevertheless, as most of us know the definition, it is a company benefit, a parting gift, something to walk away with, and better than a watch at retirement (generally). However, unlike retirement, no matter what your pockets are loaded with when you leave that job you are still going to be left looking for a new job in a tough market.

June payrolls fell by 467,000, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. That was higher than the 365,000 jobs economists surveyed by Bloomberg had expected employers would shed.

The BLS said job losses were widespread across the major industry sectors, with large declines occurring in manufacturing, professional and business services and construction. While the BLS called the 9.5 percent unemployment rate "little changed," the rate did climb from the previous month's rate, reaching a 26-year high. Still, the rise wasn't as steep as economists had projected. The number of unemployed persons (14.7 million) was little changed.

Consumer confidence has risen to an eight month high, as reported by the The New York-based private research organization Conference Board. What does this mean for you? More spending by the general public and private/public companies. As a direct result we will see the economy slowly start to strengthen, triggering less employment cuts by some companies and new hiring by others.

"Looking ahead, consumers are considerably less pessimistic than they were earlier this year, and expectations are that business conditions, the labor market and incomes will improve in the coming months," Lynn Franco, director of The Conference Board Consumer Research Center, said. "While confidence is still weak by historic standards, as far as consumers are concerned, the worst is now behind us."

With confidence in the economy strengthening you can prepare for future opportunities by developing your own insight and knowledge to your specific industry that you are involved with, updating your resume, and applying for jobs now if a move is warranted.