Job Openings at Highest Since 2008 Signal U.S. Rebound

[Purveyor]

Source: Bloomberg

Job openings climbed in February to the highest level in almost five years, signaling U.S. employers were preparing to expand before federal government budget cuts took effect last month.

The number of positions waiting to be filled rose by 314,000 to 3.93 million, the most since May 2008, from a revised 3.61 million the prior month, the Labor Department said today in Washington. The pace of hiring increased to a three-month high.

The report, which followed data last week showing payroll gains cooled in March from a one-year high, indicates the labor market was gaining momentum before across-the-board cuts in government spending went into effect on March 1. Federal Reserve policy makers are waiting for a sustained pickup in hiring and a drop in the unemployment rate before tapering record stimulus.

“It makes you wonder if the March payrolls report was an anomaly,” said Brian Jones, a senior U.S. economist at Societe Generale in New York, who projected openings would increase. “Things are getting better. Job openings will continue to improve.”

Read more: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-04-09/job-openings-in-u-s-rose-in-february-to-almost-five-year-high.html

[Kelvin Mace]

1. Hardly a rebound when there are

about 4 job seekers for every job.

[jtuck004]

11. 26 million job seekers, 3.9 million jobs. It's party time. n/t

[840high]

14. Sad.

[LongTomH]

12. The jobs coming back are mostly low-wage jobs, even skilled workers are hired as 'temps'.....

or 'independent contractors,' meaning practically no benefits and employment is temporary.

I encountered this when I lost my programming job in 2005. I hung on with a low-wage call-center job for a few years until I was called back in 2008 as a contractor to fix software I had created years ago; software that Northwest Airlines themselves was worth millions to them. My contract wasn't renewed, so I was let go at the end of 2009.

I'm not complaining (Too much!), I managed to hang on with savings until I could retire at full Social Security. I've got a small pension (Our #!@ CEO froze pensions along with cutting salaries and laying people off!) and better than average Social Security, since I was making decent money during my peak earning years.

Oh, about those low-wage, call-center jobs. I was talking recently with a young law school graduate, now working at a call center. He's starting his work life at the sort of job I ended up in! Don't ever say old and young don't communicate!

[phleshdef]

13. The article in the OP says otherwise.

February’s jump in openings, the biggest since March 2012, was led by a surge among health-care providers and the hospitality industry, including hotels and restaurants. Retailers showed a decrease in help wanted for the month.

However, MOST jobs are low wage jobs, even during the best of economies. There are always more fast food/gas station/retail jobs than others. Thats normal.

And as a programmer myself, I've never had trouble finding work, even during the worst of the recession. You must be in the wrong town. Come to Columbus Ohio, if you know C#. The head hunters still call me a few times a month even though I've been employed with my recent job for almost 4 years and keep telling them I've no intention of leaving.

[xtraxritical]

17. Yeah, that's why we must enhance the H-1b visa program and invite aliens

to fill American jobs. Dick Durbin (D) Il.
sarcasm goes here ->

[DCBob]

2. oh dear, what will the doom and gloom crowd do now?

actually I am sure they will find a dark lining to this.. no doubt.

[Kelvin Mace]

3. Jobs paying minimum wage

are not very useful to the populace.

[DCBob]

4. yeah, better to not have a job at all.

[Purveyor]

5. Actually too many believe THAT and any positive reports on job openings scare the hell out of

them as they can't convincingly use the 'no one is hiring' canard any longer.

[Kelvin Mace]

7. I lived on public assistance back when it was far more generous than it is today

And as soon as my mother took a job, they started penalizing her one dollar for every two dollars she made. The net result was that although we had "more" money, we also had more expenses (transportation and baby sitters), plus they eliminated rent subsidies and food stamps, so we wound up losing money.

Today, the safety net is almost non-existent.

Stories like this perpetuate the canard that there "are jobs for anyone willing to work" ignoring the fact that the jobs do not pay a living wage.

[Kelvin Mace]

6. Pretty much, actually

since it is possible to go further into debt faster by taking a minimum wage job.

If you are on public assistance existing at slightly above starvation level, you get to lose your food stamps, housing assistance and Medicaid to get a job that now requires the expense of getting to work (i.e. own a car with the added burden of gasoline, insurance and repair bills) and pay your own insurance for a policy inferior to Medicaid. If you have children, be sure to add child care costs.

[Jimbo S]

8. I'm seeing it

Definately more job openings now than back in 2009.

[Benton D Struckcheon]

9. My personal experience

Just to see if the huge problem my son is having finding anything was for real or not, I went with him to a jobs fair.
Almost all of the jobs were life insurance sales or other types of sales jobs. Nothing for a guy who is never going to be good at selling stuff to other people, except for one: a place that said it was a web development firm looking to hire some people. I still had my son go to a couple of the tables and talk to the folks.
Being as I've been programming since TRS-80 days, I handed in my resume to the web company. The next day I got a call: they needed a couple of testers for their latest version of the software. I came in the following day for a 10 to 5 stint.
Come the end of the day, I get an envelope w/cash for 65 bux: the first hour, or maybe it was half hour, wasn't included as it was an "interview" to see if I knew enough to test the software. 10 per hour for the rest of the time. They said they'd assess and get back to me.
Ain't holding my breath. It was obvious from the get go that this is their scam: they go out and get a couple of victims to test their stuff as they need it, pay em cash, promise em a call back if they like what they see, rinse, repeat. Not a bad strategy if you're looking to save on hiring permanent employees to do this job. Doesn't do much for anyone though.
So yeah, there's openings out there if you're a good salesman. Lots of those. Of course you do have to bring in whatever the quota is to get paid anything decent; basically you get paid on a piecework basis. Other than that, crap like what I experienced. That about covers it.

(BTW, I'm retired and don't actually need the work, so in the end I wound up feeling vaguely guilty about taking a few dollars from someone who might have been in far more desperate circumstances.)

[winter is coming]

18. A reference point for other DUers: I was paid 11 dollars and change per hour to test software

about 30 years ago as a summer intern.

Yeah, the jobs situation is improving.

[onehandle]

10. Good. I have a job, but I'm jonsing for a better one. nt

[Comrade_McKenzie]

15. Seeing "NOW HIRING" signs in my town for the first time since probably 2006. nt

[closeupready]

16. Saw one today, here in Manhattan, at an upscale restaurant.

Also, I see a lot of new construction going on, and lots of construction crews being jitneyed about. Anecdotal, I know, but still, it's good to see momentum going in a positive direction for a change.