Jobless in America

Looking for Work Takes Time

2010-07-14T20:32:00.000-07:00

Here is a great article about being self-employed and looking for work at the same time by KC Morgan!

Click here.........

If you wish you can also post your comments about how long you have been looking for work if you are in the middle of a job search.

For me personally it took a little over four months to find a job after being laid off on 12/9/09, I was hired for a new job on 4/28/10.

I tried the self-employment option but only landed one customer so I went back to being a W-2 employee for now.

Job Tips for the Overqualified

2010-05-15T16:21:00.000-07:00

Have you been told you are overqualified?

As a highly skilled professional it can be difficult and daunting to look for a new job after a recent lay-off. Your skills can be both an asset and a liability depending on how you present your credentials and the "What's in it for me" (WIIFM) factor. The WIIFM factor can apply to either you as the applicant or your potential employer. You need to create a win-win situation for your future employer as well as yourself.

A future employer after looking at your credentials may feel very intimidated and will pass over your cover letter and resume because of their perception that you are overqualified.

1) Define What Motivates You
===========================

The way to change their mind is tell tell your potential employer what motivates you to apply for their position. If it's a family issue that motivates you then say something like "Your position would allow me to spend more time with my family". Most hiring managers will understand this and appreciate your extensive knowledge which you bring to their firm.

2) Don't forget that your experience is a big plus

Instead of loading up your cover letter with excessive industry jargon and all the great things you did on your last job, focus instead on how you can help your potential employers reach their business goals.

3) Let your potential employer know that you won't jump ship

Because you are perceived to be overqualified your potential employer may feel that you will "jump ship" and quit for a better position because you are either bored with your job or feel that you are underpaid.

Instead, focus on how you persevered in your previous positions and made a significant commitment to staying in one place.

_____________________________________________

Being overqualified is not the end of your career. Instead focus on the positives of your credentials and be sincere in projecting to your future employer your value to the organization.

Click Here for more info...........

Job Interview Questions Relating to Being Overqualified

Job Growth Looks Promising in 2010

2009-12-30T18:40:00.000-08:00

Miniscule job growth appears to be occurring in 11 major metro areas.

For more info click this link: http://www.cnn.com/2009/LIVING/worklife/12/23/cb.cities.employment.growth/index.html?iref=allsearch

Top 50 Jobs in America

2009-11-08T19:36:00.001-08:00

Funny that working for the NYCTA is at the top of the list. Read more ......

I was a consultant to the NYCTA with Sentinel Technologies working with Lockheed-Martin to upgrade their computer systems and perform Y2K remediation from a WANG system to HP-Unix back in 1999. Very old school stuff now!!

10.2% National Unemployment Rate - What Does it Mean?

2009-11-08T19:00:00.000-08:00

If you have a job right now the 10.2% national unemployment rate doesn't mean much.

But if you're out of work and have been looking for a job for more than six months it's demoralizing; with the unemployment rate at the highest point since 1983. This was much worse than the U.S. Labor Department economists predicted.

It also does not include the underemployed and people who have given up looking for a job after a fruitless job search.

Also, contrary to popular belief someone who is collecting unemployment compensation is not counted in the unemployment rate if they are no longer actively seeking employment!!

Perhaps the real unemployment rate is closer to 20%.

For more details about this issue click here.

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Jobs won't recover until 2012 - three more years to go!! For more details click here.

7 States in U.S. Now Have Unemployment over 10%

2009-04-02T17:16:00.000-07:00

Nevada, California, Rhode Island, North Carolina, Oregon, South Carolina and Michigan in the Feb. 2009 unemployment report from the U.S. Department of Labor all have unemployment rates over 10%.

Nevada with it's 10.1% unemployment rate ranked 45th out of 51 states (including the District of Columbia). Michigan - ranked dead last at 51, the unemployment rate has reached 12%.

In Minnesota - #31 of 51, the unemployment rate mirrors the national rate of 8.1% in February 2009. Last year at the same time Minnesota's unemployment rate was about 50% less at 4.6%.

Alabama ranked 34 of 51 has an unemployment rate of 8.4%.

For more information on these statistics click here.

Japan's Jobless and Homeless Rent Net Rooms

2009-03-01T19:43:00.001-08:00

For $20 a day in Japan you can rent a closet sized room with Internet access to continue your job search. A sign of the times. Maybe they will start that trend here in the U.S. too??

Although Japan's national unemployment rate has fallen it seems to indicate that jobless are giving up hunt ( which is the same disturbing trend here in the U.S.)

Read more from CNN International.....

National Unemployment Rate is Now 7.2%

2009-01-09T10:16:00.000-08:00

WASHINGTON, D.C. (1/9/09): The U.S.A.'s unemployment rate jumped to a record high of 7.2 percent in December, the highest since 1993. Last month, nervous employers cut 524,000 jobs, as a final ending to one of the worst years in modern history. Read more from Jeannine Aversa - AP Economics Writer............

The Five Myths about the U.S. Economy

2008-12-26T10:09:00.000-08:00

In an Op Ed piece in the December 16th, 2008 edition of the Mpls. Star Tribune which originally appeared in the Washington Post - James P. Moore, Jr. dispels the popular belief that the U.S. economy will eventually be surpassed by China and India.

Read more by clicking here.

Sandwich Board MIT Grad Finally Gets a Job

2008-12-11T14:56:00.001-08:00

Finally after 12 months of being out of work an MIT grad in NYC gets a job with an accounting firm.

Joshua Persky was out on the streets with a sandwich board advertising his skills in an unconventional job search methodology. For more read the New York Post story.

Read Joshua Persky's LinkedIn Profile.

America's Top 10 Fastest Dying Towns

2008-12-09T19:04:00.000-08:00

Number 1 in Forbes Top 10 Fastest Dying Town in America is Bensenville, IL a suburb of Chicago located south of O'Hare Airport. Incomes have dropped 11.4% and poverty rates have doubled.

Most of the towns are in the Midwest with a few southern states. Click Here for more info

U.S. Unmeployment Reaches 6.7%

2008-12-06T20:11:00.001-08:00

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) November 2008 jobs report released yesterday (Friday) indicated over 533,000 jobs were lost last month. This raises the U.S. unemployment rate from 6.1% in October to 6.7% in November. However, once again the people who have left the work force are not counted; they are the "forgotten" ones. BLS defines these individuals with an oblique term: The Underutilization Rate.

BLS refers to the discouraged and underemployed (those working fewer hours than they would like) as the "underutilization" rate which is now up to 12.5% in November an increase of 1.5% from the 11% reported in September 2008.

So let's do some real simple math here: 6.7% reported U.S. unemployment rate for November plus 12.5% underutilization rate means 19.2% "real unemployment" rate. Only 5.8% to go to hit the magic 25% unemployment of the Great Depression. Maybe it will happen. Only time can tell.

This factor is hard to determine since accurate methodologies for determining who has given up looking for work or may hardly work at all (underemployment) does not have the same high degree of statistical analysis.

Original Sources: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Unemployment Report - 12/5/08
"Lost Jobs Add to the Economic Free Fall" - StarTribune - 12/6/08 - Page 1

Customizing Your Resume to a Job Posting

2008-12-02T08:01:00.000-08:00

How do you land an interview with online postings?

Use an online job search tool such as SimplyHired which allows you to sort through thousands of jobs in your zip code using a key word. Then as a final filter you can whittle the list down to a smaller subset by using a date filter to show only the most recent postings; right down to the last few hours!!

There's no sense in applying for a stale job posting.....anything more than 24-48 hours is probably already filled. Many job postings are not removed even after they are filled.

Second, you must be ready to customize your resume to the job posting. Don't use your standard one size fits all garden variety resume. If you don't customize your resume prospective employers or H/R screeners will look at your resume and make a snap judgment that you are not a good fit. Be sure to use buzz words and terminology from the job posting in your customized resume.

Good luck and happy job hunting!

The Job Search Networking Letter

2008-11-30T11:00:00.000-08:00

What is a job search networking letter?

Alison Doyle from About.com (A New York Times Company) has a great example of a networking letter. Click Here for more info.

The purpose of the job search networking letter is to start the process of networking without actually applying for a job. You should not ask the person you will be meeting with in a networking interview if they can hire you. That is a big no-no.

The networking interview is also referred to as an informational interview since you may be interviewing with someone in your target job search field to gain more insight about your target career path.

Faith Based and Secular Job Networking Groups

2008-11-29T12:41:00.000-08:00

Now as the global financial markets spin out of control and unemployment continues to rise in the U.S. we need to turn to secular and faith-based job networking groups.

For a list of your local job networking groups click here.

A good Biblical reference is "What the Bible Says to You.......If Your Between Jobs" by Paul R. McGraw which is used by many faith based job networking groups.

Additional Job Networking information can be obtained from About.com

National Unemployment Rate is Now 6.1%

2008-10-08T19:09:00.000-07:00

But what about the people that quit looking? Add another 3% and your'e at 9.1% which is probably the real unemployment rate.

Stock market tanks again today by almost 200 points despite the Federal Reserve lowering interest rates by two points for interbank loans down to 1.5%. Yesterday it tanked about 500 points. What next??

Everybody thought that move plus the bailout bill being signed would fix everything. Nope, not this time.

Things are so tough here in the Twin Cities that it's hard to even find a temp job these days!!

From the U.S. Gov't Bureau of Labor Statistics.........

The Employment Situation for September 2008

Nonfarm payroll employment declined by 159,000 in September and
the national unemployment rate held at 6.1%, the Bureau of Labor
Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported last Friday
October 3rd.

>Click Here for Completed Detailed Report

How to Make it Past the Spam Filters When Applying for Jobs via E-mail

2008-09-15T18:56:00.000-07:00

From PC Mag.com Article by Lance Ulanoff: Take These Steps to Avoid Spam Purgatory

Here are eight steps to prevent your job application e-mails from ending up in your target company's spam folders:

1. Forget the Attachments. If your résumé is unexpected by the recipient, try putting your cover letter and résumé in the body of your e-mail. It may not be formatted correctly, but it will get through.

2. Don't Be Too Clever or Wordy. Avoid colorful and snarky language.

3. Simple Does It. Forget weird characters and all caps.

4. Skip the Graphics. A company that doesn't know you does not—unless you're an actor—need a headshot.

5. Watch the Characters. Mail with Chinese, Japanese, or Hebrew characters often goes right to the spam bin.

6. Get Notification. Use your mail app's Read Notification feature. You'll then get an e-mail when someone has actually opened the message.

7. Use Your Personal E-mail. If one domain, such as your company's, is blocked, your Gmail account probably will not be.

8. Call. When all else fails, simply call your intended recipient. They likely will appreciate the effort.

And if you can't figure any of this out, you probably don't deserve the job in the first place.

Jay Leno Says it All......................

2008-09-13T13:32:00.000-07:00

Strange Political Campaign

"Well, it's a very strange political campaign. I mean, out on the campaign trail, John McCain and Sarah Palin are talking about how they stood up to the Republican party, they fought the Republican establishment, and they battled Republicans. Their message: vote Republican."

---Jay Leno

Jobless rate jumps to 5-year high of 6.1 percent

2008-09-05T07:06:00.000-07:00

How does our current national unemployment rate of 6.1% compare with 1982?

Here is the comparison:

By December 1982 the national unemployment rate was 10.8% which is 4.7% more than our current national unemployment rate.

As I have stated before the "real" unemployment rate is probably 2 or 3% more than what is reported since individuals who have exhausted their unemployment benefits or have quit looking for a job are no longer counted. From a government statistical standpoint only those workers who are actively looking for work and are currently receiving unemployment benefits are counted as being unemployed.

Top Ten Worst Tips for Job Seekers

2008-09-04T11:02:00.000-07:00

This is my first post after moving from Alabama to Minnesota.

One week after moving to a new apartment in Eden Prairie, Minnesota (1,000 miles from our previous location) I came across an article from BusinessWeek regarding what not to do in the job search process.

Snail mail still works over e-mail for getting a hiring manager's attention. Use both e-mail and snail mail during the job hunting process. Most of the time unsolicited e-mail ends up in the hiring manager's spam folder and some e-mail filtering programs at many major corporations do not allow external e-mail with attachments to even make it past their firewall.

Click here >> Top Ten Worst Job Tips

U.S. Weekly Unemployment Claims Exceed 400k

2008-07-24T16:17:00.000-07:00

U.S. Labor department says number of newly laid off workers rose by 34,000 last week to 406,000 for the week ending Saturday-July 19th.

Worst May Not Be Over

The unemployment rate didn't budge at 5.5% in June, after zooming in May by the most in two decades. The unemployment rate is expected to climb to 6% or higher by early next year.

Click Here to read more........

Best States for Job Hunting

2008-07-23T20:31:00.000-07:00

Well is this biased or not? You decide. Minnesota is not listed, nor is Alabama. However, South Dakota is next door to Minnesota. Eventually I'll be heading to Minnesota after selling our house in Alabama.

# Story Highlights
# Job hunt might be easier in states with low unemployment rates
# South Dakota and Idaho have unemployment rates of three percent
# Trade, transportation and utilities are top industries in both states

Link: http://edition.cnn.com/2008/LIVING/worklife/02/27/best.jobs.states/index.html

Worst States for Job Hunting

2008-07-23T13:35:00.000-07:00

So where is the worst state to look for a job right now???

Michigan for sure, lots of layoffs from GM, Ford, etc.

However, Alabama (where I live right now) and Minnesota where I might be heading eventually is not listed.

Story Highlights
High unemployment rates can handicap job seekers
Michigan, Mississippi and South Carolina have highest rates
Alaska's top industry is government

Link: Worst States for Job Hunting

U.S. Unemployment Rate Jumps 1/2 Percent in One Month

2008-06-21T12:23:00.000-07:00

Just when you thought things were getting a little better maybe..........

Last month's (May 2008) jobless rate zooms 0.5% , the biggest monthly increase since 1986; U.S. stocks plunge nearly 400 points due to inflation fears, higher oil prices and of course the increasing jobless figures.

Real unemployment nationwide is probably at least 2 or 3% higher since the ranks of unemployed citizens who have exhausted their unemployment benefits are no longer counted as being unemployed by either state or federal agencies.

Click the links below for more information on this disturbing trend in national unemployment.

Google Generic Search

International Herald Tribune

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Alabama Unemployment Rate Hits 4.7% in May 2008

2008-06-20T10:00:00.000-07:00

Last October 2007 (See post below) the unemployment rate in Alabama was at its lowest rate ever.....Now what happened? It's up 1.6% from 3.1% to 4.7% !!!

But at least we're not yet at the historical high of 14.4% in December 1982 during the reign of President Ronald Reagan.

For the latest Alabama unemployment statistics click here.

Record Low Unemployment for Alabama

2007-11-18T12:54:00.000-08:00

Recently the state of Alabama announced that in October unemployment fell to an all time low of 3.1 percent. One of the factors which contributed to this low number is some counties in Alabama have almost 100% employment such as Shelby with only a 2% unemployment rate.

However, other counties such as Bullock, Wilcox and Dallas have unemployment rates in excess of 6%.

Another factor which is almost never discussed are the people who have given up looking for work. They are never counted as unemployed for state or federal statistics. Unemployment statistics only include those workers actively seeking employment and filing for unemployment benefits. If your unemployment benefits ran out or you were a 1009 contractor and didn't pay into the unemployment fund you're out of luck and you're just not counted!

For the latest Alabama unemployment statistics click here.

U.S. Unemployment Statistics

2007-11-10T10:30:00.000-08:00

Current Unemployment Rates for States and Historical Highs/Lows - Seasonally Adjusted

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

LINK: http://www.bls.gov/web/lauhsthl.htm

NOTE: As a general rule state and federal jobless statistics do not include workers who have given up looking for a job or no longer qualify for unemployment compensation. In other words, only those workers who have filed for unemployment benefits and are currently seeking work are included in the statistics.

The only reason it didn't rise in August as well, says New York University professor Nouriel Roubini, is that "500,000 discouraged workers left the labor force and did not show up as unemployed." That explains in part why Roubini, a former economic advisor in the Clinton administration, is now deeply bearish.

	Aug. 2007	Historical High		Historical Low
State	Rate	Date	Rate	Date	Rate
Alabama	3.8	Dec. 1982	14.4	Apr. 2007	3.3
Alaska	6.3	July 1986	11.5	Apr. 2007	5.8
Arizona	3.7	Feb. 1983	11.5	June 2007	3.4
Arkansas	5.5	Mar. 1983	10.2	Sept. 2000	4.1
California	5.5	Feb. 1983	11.0	Nov. 2006	4.7
Colorado	3.8	Nov. 1982	9.1	Jan. 2001	2.5
Connecticut	4.6	Jan. 1976	10.0	Nov. 2000	2.1
Delaware	3.0	Jan. 1977	8.2	Oct. 1988	2.9

District of Columbia	5.6	Mar. 1983	11.4	Dec. 1988	4.8
Florida	4.0	Mar. 1976	9.7	Oct. 2006	3.2
Georgia	4.4	Jan. 1983	8.3	Dec. 2000	3.4
Hawaii	2.6	Mar. 1976	10.2	Dec. 2006	2.0
Idaho	2.4	Feb. 1983	9.4	July 2007	2.3
Illinois	5.4	Feb. 1983	12.9	Nov. 2006	4.0
Indiana	4.9	Nov. 1982	12.8	Apr. 1999	2.6
Iowa	3.9	May 1983	8.5	Jan. 2000	2.6
Kansas	4.3	Sept. 1982	7.4	Oct. 1978	2.9
Kentucky	5.6	Dec. 1982	12.1	Mar. 2000	4.0
Louisiana	3.8	Sept. 1986	12.9	July 2006	3.3
Maine	4.8	Mar. 1977	9.0	Jan. 2001	3.0
Maryland	3.7	Aug. 1982	8.3	Mar. 2000	3.3
Massachusetts	4.5	Jan. 1976	10.9	Dec. 2000	2.7
Michigan	7.4	Nov. 1982	16.9	Mar. 2000	3.2
Minnesota	4.6	Nov. 1982	9.0	Apr. 1999	2.5
Mississippi	5.9	May 1983	13.7	Jan. 2001	4.9
Missouri	5.3	Apr. 1983	10.5	Jan. 2000	2.6
Montana	2.8	May 1983	8.7	Mar. 2007	2.0
Nebraska	3.2	Feb. 1983	6.8	Feb. 1998	2.2
Nevada	5.0	Dec. 1982	10.7	May 2006	4.1
New Hampshire	3.6	June 1992	7.7	Apr. 1987	1.9
New Jersey	4.3	Feb. 1977	10.6	June 2000	3.5
New Mexico	3.8	Apr. 1983	9.9	June 2007	3.2
New York	4.9	July 1976	10.5	Mar. 2007	4.0
North Carolina	4.8	Feb. 1983	10.2	Apr. 1999	3.1
North Dakota	3.2	Mar. 1983	6.9	Jan. 1998	2.5
Ohio	5.7	Jan. 1983	13.8	Mar. 2001	3.9
Oklahoma	4.4	Aug. 1986	9.4	Jan. 2001	2.7
Oregon	5.4	Nov. 1982	12.1	Apr. 1995	4.7
Pennsylvania	4.5	Mar. 1983	12.9	Mar. 2007	3.8
Rhode Island	5.1	Nov. 1982	9.7	July 1988	2.9
South Carolina	5.6	Jan. 1983	11.4	Mar. 1998	3.1
South Dakota	3.0	Oct. 1982	5.9	Mar. 2000	2.4
Tennessee	4.0	Dec. 1982	12.4	Mar. 2000	3.8
Texas	4.2	Oct. 1986	9.3	June 2007	4.1
Utah	2.6	Mar. 1983	9.7	Feb. 2007	2.3
Vermont	4.0	June 1976	9.0	Mar. 2000	2.2
Virginia	3.1	Jan. 1983	7.8	Jan. 2001	2.2
Washington	4.6	Nov. 1982	12.2	Apr. 2007	4.4
West Virginia	4.9	Mar. 1983	18.2	Jan. 2007	4.0
Wisconsin	5.3	Jan. 1983	11.8	Apr. 1999	2.9
Wyoming	3.4	May 1983	10.1	Feb. 1979	1.9

NOTE: Data series begin in January 1976. Rates shown are a percentage of the labor force. Data refer to place of residence. Estimates have been revised back to January 2002 and reflect new population controls, model reestimation, and revised seasonal adjustment. Historical highs and lows show the most recent month that a rate was recorded in the event of multiple occurrences.

Last Modified Date: September 25, 2007

LINK: http://www.bls.gov/web/lauhsthl.htm

COPYRIGHT NOTICE: The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) is a Federal government agency and everything they publish, both in hard copy and electronically, is in the public domain, except for previously copyrighted photographs and illustrations. You are free to use our public domain material without specific permission, although they do ask that you cite the Bureau of Labor Statistics as the source.

The public domain use of our materials includes linking to our website. You do not need to obtain special permission from the BLS to link to our site.

Welcome to the Jobless in America Blog

2007-10-28T20:51:00.000-07:00

Welcome to my latest blog. I have a few more which you can find here.

Since I have had problems in the past with chronic job hopping and joblessness I will be commenting on my personal experiences dealing with economic recessions and unemployment. In addition, I'll be commenting on what the future might bring for the underemployed or soon to be unemployed.

I really think we are heading towards another recession which might be a lot worse than the recession of the early 1980's. I'll be posting some stats from the last big recession of 1980-1982.

On the posts below are more disturbing economic reports about rising oil and gold prices, unemployment statistics and the sub prime mortgage debacle.

Subscribe to Jobless in America

You Ain't Seen Nothing Yet.....Probably More Future Job Losses

2007-10-28T17:56:00.000-07:00

Economist Nouriel Roubini's Blog says it all with his latest post from October 28th, 2007. He and other expert economists contend that we are in the middle of the "worst U.S. housing bust".

What does this mean to Joe six-pack or Susie Yuppie?
_________________________________________

Both Joe and Susie stand to lose big time with housing prices plummeting plummeting by 20%.

With oil prices rising if you have a long commute in excess of say 50-60 miles one way to work like some folks in California......well it just could get mighty expensive to pay for all the gas for that hefty commute.

Here is more from Roubini's Blog:

"What does the macro econometric model used by the Fed imply if you shock it with the worst US housing recession, 20% fall in home prices, collapsing HEW, a severe liquidity and credit crunch, a rise in investors' risk aversion and uncertainty, and oil at $90? Would someone at the Fed let us know? And - based on that model - which cut in the Fed Funds rate it will take to avoid a recession? Hopefully someone at the Fed may have that answer and provide it to the public."

More.....about Roubini and his team of economists.

Oil Futures Hit All Time Highs - Gold Hits 28 Year High

2007-10-26T08:00:00.000-07:00

According to a published report from Reuters "Gold rose to hit its highest level since January 1980 on Friday, as firm oil prices and a weak U.S. dollar sparked buying from speculators and elevated its appeal as an alternative investment

-- Spot gold hit a bid high of $772.90 an ounce before dipping to $772.30/772.90 an ounce, still higher than $767.90/768.70 late in New York on Thursday.

-- U.S. crude futures extended gains to a new all-time high of $91.10 a barrel in early electronic trade on Friday, bolstered by supply concerns during the northern Hemisphere winter and growing political tensions in Middle East."

______________________________________________________________________

Seems like more gloom and doom...........

________________________________________________________________

Read a negative savings blog and see images from "The Great Depression"

More Jobless Than Expected - 10/25/07

2007-10-25T21:30:00.000-07:00

According to an online AP story entitled "More Jobless Than Expected" found today on CNN's website:
"The number of newly laid-off workers filing claims for unemployment benefits fell by fewer than had been expected last week".

What does this mean?

Some economists feel it could be signs of further weakening in the U.S. economy due to the slump in housing and the serious credit crunch brought on by the suprime mortgage debacle .

Another Blogspot.com blogger Mark L. Bail of Granby, Massachusetts sums it all up in easy to understand terms with his October 22, 2007 post entitled: Subprime Mortgage Debacle Will Hurt All of Us.

Job Postings from Selected Alabama Newspapers - 10/25/07

2007-10-25T19:00:00.000-07:00

Locally in my home town of Demopolis, Alabama in today's Demopolis Times only three jobs were posted in the newspaper. Two of the job postings could be defined as internal newspaper jobs since one was for a carrier position delivering newspapers and the other was for a classified account executive for the Selma Times which is owned by Boone Newspapers, Inc. who also owns the Demopolis Times.

The only other external job was for a part-time U.S. Census Bureau job which pays $11.01 per hour plus mileage at the rate of $0.485 per mile.

These three ads from page 8 of the Demopolis Times Classifieds took up 19.5 column inches of ad space.

No online jobs were posted at the Demopolis Times employment page.

Not too many jobs for a small town of 7,700 in west central Alabama.

However, the Selma Times had online links to various jobs 50 miles east of Demopolis in the Selma, AL area with one resource showing seven medical jobs posted within the last four days.

In Tuscaloosa, a city of 80,000 located 60 miles northeast of Demopolis, 30 jobs were listed using 25.75 column inches of ad space in the Tuscaloosa News Classified Ad page - 7C on 10/25/07. For those job seekers who have Internet access the Tuscaloosa News online job interface ties in to the Monster.com system.

In Birmingham, a city of 240,000 about 100 miles northeast of Demopolis, 264 jobs (and employer job lines) were listed using 263 column inches of ad space in the Birmingham News. That's just for a weekday, the weekend always has more. Job seekers with Net access can visit The B'ham News online job interface at al.com .

So to summarize there are probably more jobs listed online than in print. That's been the trend for probably more than seven years. However, some of the jobs listed in the newspaper classified ad section may not appear online. It really depends on the type of job. If it's non-technical like truck driving it may be easier to still post the job openings in the paper because a lot of truck drivers still read the paper with a morning cup of coffee at their local truck stop or hangout.

For many people it's easier to pick up a paper and look for a job than it is to log into the Net and look for jobs. It seems more impersonal using the Net to look for a job than going through the newspaper.

Big Cities vs. Small Towns - Workers Move to Where the Jobs Are

2007-10-25T18:30:00.000-07:00

Larger cities seem to have much more jobs available which historically has been the case in America. Even now in the 21st century small town America seems to be losing it's young people who graduate from high school, go on to college and never return to their hometowns other than to visit their parents. In west central Alabama many workers have either moved to Tuscaloosa to seek employment or Birmingham due to the limited number of high-paying jobs with benefits in their small hometowns.

Americans in the early 20th century left economically depressed regions for more prosperous cities and states. During the Great Depression and Dust Bowl years of the 1930's a large migration of Oklahoma farmers headed west to the states of California, Oregon and Washington.

After World War II there was another large migration of Southerners heading north in search of jobs in Chicago, Illinois, Cleveland, Ohio and Detroit, Michigan. Wartime boom towns like Mobile, Alabama lost a large chunk of the shipbuilding jobs once the demand for U.S. Navy ships declined at the end of the war in 1945.

Source: http://www.cba.ua.edu/about/news/press_releases/news070903.html

FIFTEEN LARGEST CITIES IN ALABAMA, 2002

City	2002 Population Estimate
1. Birmingham	239,416
2. Montgomery	201,425
3. Mobile	194,862
4. Huntsville	162,536
5. Tuscaloosa	79,149
6. Hoover	64,265
7. Dothan	58,998
8. Decatur	53,941
9. Auburn	45,389
10. Gadsden	37,966
11. Florence	35,814
12. Madison	32,335
13. Bessemer	29,503
14. Phenix City	28,503
15. Prichard	28,200

Minnesota Regional Profile - Job Availability

2007-10-25T17:30:00.000-07:00

MN REGIONAL PROFILE: SEVEN COUNTY METRO AREA

Counties: Anoka, Carver, Dakota, Hennepin, Ramsey, Scott, and Washington

Key Cities: Minneapolis, St. Paul, Anoka, Bloomington, Chaska, Lakeville, Stillwater

2,771,030 - Region’s 2004 population

54% Region’s percentage of state’s population in 2004

SOURCE: http://homepages.mtn.org/mca/mdastudypages/region11profile.pdf

This is where I used to live from 1983-1986. I'm sure the population increased significantly during the eighteen year period since I left the Metro Area and the time the census was taken.

Over 4,000 temp and permanent positions where found last night (10/24/07) on the Minneapolis Tribune's online job interface. Not all job categories/industries were selected in the search due to the limits of the job search engine so there probably is significantly more jobs than that.

So the obvious conclusion is.........new jobs and new job growth because of increasing economic activity in larger metro areas overpowers economic stagnation in small town America.

Economic Apartheid in Alabama

2007-10-25T16:30:00.000-07:00

Just reading a few online excerpts from Robert Bullard's Dumping in Dixie book this evening brings the economic reality of west central Alabama to light for me and anyone else who might be interested in why parts of the Deep South seem to have never recovered after the Civil War.

"Starting with the premise that all Americans have a basic right to live in a healthy environment, this book chronicles the efforts of five African American communities, empowered by the civil rights movement, to link environmentalism with issues of social justice."
Quoted from Google Book Listing for Dumping in Dixie.

The other problem with economic apartheid and its insidious economic stagnation is the archaic 1901 Alabama State Constitution with it's more than 700 amendments. The rest of the world and the other states of the Union need to understand what it's like to live in towns and counties with no home rule.

Despite the success of attracting a world-class steel mill in Mobile there are still many areas of Alabama with chronic unemployment. Although the current state unemployment rate is below the national average that does not mean that thousands of new jobs are being created all over the state. Rather the new job growth is only concentrated in large metropolitan areas such as Mobile. Also, unemployment statistics on the state and national level do not include those workers who have given up looking for work.

At least there is hope in the form of the non-profit and non-political group Alabama Citizens for Constitutional Reform (ACCR).

"Despite growing legislative support, companion bills to “Let the People Vote” on whether to call a constitutional convention stalled in the Alabama legislative session ending June 7. Two bills that would have allowed the Legislature to rewrite two of our Constitution's articles also failed to see the light of day.This just proves that the answer is up to us, the people, to bring the change needed. And we plan to do that in 2008!" Quoted from ACCR Homepage.