Editor: Crass Cash
Looking for a job? Things are looking up then! Both the Orlando Business Journal and also Barron's this week are featuring the job market on their front page. The OBJ is talking about how contractors can't find enough subs to work for them! As I've said repeatedly, if you're looking for a job then construction offers a wonderful pathway. Not only this, but it looks like the shortage is only going to get worse.
The USA still is not producing enough homes to meet current housing growth rates. We need to be building over 1,000,000 homes a year and that's not happening. There has been a back log of commercial space as well since the Great Recession and developers are now playing catch up. When I visited Seattle a month ago there were 6 cranes in the air all redeveloping downtown. I would say this is the exception across the country, rather than the rule, but it's happening more and more.
This isn't just for construction through. Hospitality, accounting, medicine, construction, IT, manufacturing, and agriculture are all hiring. And a big part of it is because people are dropping out of the workforce and staying out. There are differing views on this and the truth as usual probably resides somewhere in the middle.
A lot dropped out of the workforce because they couldn't find a job and as a result they stayed out. However, the baby boomer generation is also retiring more and more each day. They've worked their whole life and now want to enjoy their golden years. Don't forget that there are a lot of people who worked but maybe didn't quit because they enjoyed working or because they didn't know any different or maybe their were just scared to stop. The Great Recession ended those fears because it forced them to stop. Once they got used to it they stayed retired.
The other factor that is much more worrisome is that people found that they could not work and still get by because of disability, savings, and social security. Your guess is as good as mine as to how much fraud there is will collecting disability when you don't really need it. That's actually what the Barron's article focuses on.
Regardless, these people are not working, which is a great opportunity for those of you who actually are. Finding jobs in markets where demand is high has two great benefits. First, it allows for you to find a job because of increasing demand. Secondly, the previous workers in that field were always employed which means that they can now retire. This helps reduce the labor supply, thus allowing you to keep your job, find another, and also to increase your wages. Win-win-win!
The USA still is not producing enough homes to meet current housing growth rates. We need to be building over 1,000,000 homes a year and that's not happening. There has been a back log of commercial space as well since the Great Recession and developers are now playing catch up. When I visited Seattle a month ago there were 6 cranes in the air all redeveloping downtown. I would say this is the exception across the country, rather than the rule, but it's happening more and more.
This isn't just for construction through. Hospitality, accounting, medicine, construction, IT, manufacturing, and agriculture are all hiring. And a big part of it is because people are dropping out of the workforce and staying out. There are differing views on this and the truth as usual probably resides somewhere in the middle.
A lot dropped out of the workforce because they couldn't find a job and as a result they stayed out. However, the baby boomer generation is also retiring more and more each day. They've worked their whole life and now want to enjoy their golden years. Don't forget that there are a lot of people who worked but maybe didn't quit because they enjoyed working or because they didn't know any different or maybe their were just scared to stop. The Great Recession ended those fears because it forced them to stop. Once they got used to it they stayed retired.
The other factor that is much more worrisome is that people found that they could not work and still get by because of disability, savings, and social security. Your guess is as good as mine as to how much fraud there is will collecting disability when you don't really need it. That's actually what the Barron's article focuses on.
Regardless, these people are not working, which is a great opportunity for those of you who actually are. Finding jobs in markets where demand is high has two great benefits. First, it allows for you to find a job because of increasing demand. Secondly, the previous workers in that field were always employed which means that they can now retire. This helps reduce the labor supply, thus allowing you to keep your job, find another, and also to increase your wages. Win-win-win!
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