What we have been extolling for the past 4 months is being born out by actual figures from the state. The Pittsburgh region added 9,200 jobs in May. We have been reporting that, as a job’s publication and Internet job board, we are seeing the increased demand for workers first hand, not only in our media but most others locally as well. We will still wait to celebrate because to truly affect the long term health of our area economy this trend will need to continue throughout this year and next. Fortunately, at this writing, we have not seen it reverse. In fact, this is shaping up to be the best summer season for recruitment since 2001 here in Pittsburgh.
If you are a job seeker, the most in demand categories we are seeing right now are nursing (it is as tight as we have EVER seen it), sales people for most categories of products (including retail), truck drivers and anybody who knows how to work a socket wrench (mechanics). These seem to be where the the most demand is, but opportunities are becoming widespread across most job categories. We will continue to touch on the trends that we see from month to month. Our hope is that a year from now we will be able to look back and say early 2007 is when Pittsburgh finally turned the corner on job creation.
Mellon Financial Corp has announced the expansion plans for their data center located in the Northpointe Industrial Park near Ford City, Armstrong County. The site was originally completed a year ago but will now more than double in size. These positions will offer higher paying jobs in an area that badly needs them. The 200 new jobs will be added over the next 2 years. See article
Hourly job growth led the way for total growth in Pittsburgh during May, according to the monthly jobs index from Monster. This index actually measures employer’s level of activity in recruiting new workers and is a precursor to job growth itself. This is a continuation of a trend that we saw begin in January of this year for the what could be the best hourly job market Pittsburgh has seen in 7 years. Here is an excerpt from the press release:
Online Job Demand in Pittsburgh Rises in May,
According to the Monster Local Employment Index
PITTSBURGH, June 18, 2007 – The Monster Local Employment Index for
Pittsburgh gained two points in May, extending a four-month upward growth trend
despite a general seasonal slowdown in online recruitment activity among several whitecollar
occupations. Strong demand for workers in education, manufacturing and
construction helped the Index for Pittsburgh achieve a three percent annual growth
pace for the month, the highest on record.
Results for Pittsburgh over the past 13 months are as follows:
Public sector specific occupations such as education, training, and library; and military
specific led the Index in terms of growth during the month of May. Both categories
have recorded extended growth streaks in 2007. The transportation and material
moving; and production categories also registered sharp gains, suggesting improved local
demand for manufacturing workers.
Online opportunities in the leisure and hospitality sector also increased last month.
Food preparation and serving related occupations noted the steepest year-over-year
improvement in the Index as Pittsburgh maintained its number one position for the
category among the 28 markets monitored. Sales occupations also reached a new peak
after five months of escalating online recruitment activity.
Meanwhile, the white-collar segment edged downward during May, marking an end to
the spring recruitment season for entry-level professionals. Architecture and
engineering occupations registered the most substantial downturn from the previous
month, followed closely by computer and mathematical (IT); and management. Legal
again proved to be the most atypical of the white-collar categories, following a muted
recruitment month in April with a sharp May increase.
In total, 12 occupational categories rose in May, while five declined and two were
unchanged.
We read an interesting article on MSNBC that we need to share. There is a lot of debate as to the validity on both sides of the argument, that is, the difficulty for young people to find decent jobs in their chosen fields compared to past generations and the reasons why this may be so.
This article was written by Eve Tahmincioglu for MSNBC:
Are many young adults today just not trying hard enough to launch their careers and gain financial independence?
My June 4 column addressed how many parents were struggling to help get their adult sons and daughters on the right career path. I suggested their kids needed a little bit of tough love. Mom and Dad can’t keep the gravy train going forever, right?
Well, I got a bunch of letters from folks who thought I was being too hard on recent graduates who couldn’t find jobs in their chosen professions.
Some readers pointed to a lack of economic opportunities for U.S. workers thanks to globalization and a growing chasm between the rich and poor. It’s harder today for young people trying to make it in the world than past generations, many of you wrote.
Click here for the rest of the article.
SMG and the Pittsburgh Penguin organization are going above and beyond to help the Urban League and The Employment Guide organize and hold our next big diversity job fair at the Mellon Arena in July. The intent of the Penguins is to have an informational booth at the event to begin communicating with the community about their future needs for employees and integrating with their neighbors to make the development as Pittsburgh centric as possible. This shows their statements about concern for their neighbors are more than just words.
Hopefully, as completion of the new arena draws near and with it the development of land in the vicinity, informational booths will transition to become actual interviewing opportunities for hundreds of future hourly workers. The Penguins need to be commended for their pro-activity. As we draw closer to the event we will publicize the companies who will be in attendance. We expect 30 to 40 Pittsburgh area employers to be there.
We hate to be doom and gloom but the Port Authority cuts that might come down the road, let alone the one’s we just experienced, are going to severely impact hourly workers across Allegheny County. Some workers will simply lose their job. If you make $10.00 per hour and cannot afford $3.00 per gallon gas, let alone a car with parking, how else are you going to get to a job that is no longer going to be serviced by Pat? We have an organization in Pittsburgh that is trying to help. Commute Info will be at our upcoming job fair. Please seek them out.
The May Monster Jobs Index for Pittsburgh was released this week verifying the continuation of the Pittsburgh job market improvement. Pittsburgh hourly jobs were reported to be stronger than higher end positions, but this was mainly attributed to seasonality. Contrary to many other areas of the country, one of the strongest sub categories was construction hiring. Here is a partial quote from the findings:
PITTSBURGH, June 18, 2007 – The Monster Local Employment Index for Pittsburgh gained two points in May, extending a four-month upward growth trend despite a general seasonal slowdown in online recruitment activity among several white-collar occupations. Strong demand for workers in education, manufacturing and construction helped the Index for Pittsburgh achieve a three percent annual growth pace for the month, the highest on record.
Public sector specific occupations such as education, training, and library; and military specific led the Index in terms of growth during the month of May. Both categories have recorded extended growth streaks in 2007. The transportation and material moving; and production categories also registered sharp gains, suggesting improved local demand for manufacturing workers.
Online opportunities in the leisure and hospitality sector also increased last month. Food preparation and serving related occupations noted the steepest year-over-year improvement in the Index as Pittsburgh maintained its number one position for the category among the 28 markets monitored. Sales occupations also reached a new peak after five months of escalating online recruitment activity.
Meanwhile, the white-collar segment edged downward during May, marking an end to the spring recruitment season for entry-level professionals. Architecture and engineering occupations registered the most substantial downturn from the previous month, followed closely by computer and mathematical (IT); and management. Legal again proved to be the most atypical of the white-collar categories, following a muted recruitment month in April with a sharp May increase.
In total, 12 occupational categories rose in May, while five declined and two were unchanged.
Each week we chose our Hottest Employer of the Week based on number of positions available or difficulty in filling available positions. Either way it means a good opportunity for jobseekers. This week our hottest employer is South Hills Movers looking for a number of Driver and Associate Mover positions. They are one of the largest moving companies in the nation and have been in Pittsburgh since 1925, offering competitive benefits packages to all employees with competitive pay rates, paid training and uniforms. For more details pick up this week’s The Employment Guide or visit the web site at www.pittsburgh.employmentguide.com.
