Changing Job Environment- 10 Best Jobs For The Recession And After- Part I

The job dynamics has changed big time in the last few years. Job surveys clearly show that it no longer just pay checks that determines job satisfaction. Other factors like autonomy, mobility, low stress, flexible hours, job security, health coverage, paid time off and other benefits are taking more importance when it comes to job satisfaction. This is not to say that pay does not matter. I guess with the gain of economic power by China and other emerging markets, American workers have more or less come to terms with the fact that they have to live with a standard of living that is slipping relative to other nations, and generous and automatic pay raises across industries are things of past now. The recession has only added to this trend. Workers are just happy with the fact that they have a job in hand and are not complaining about money. Also currently a huge section of America’s population is entering the retirement years which is under saved and hence are in need of continued employment. This section of work population is happy to trade a big salary with other factors like easy hours and stress and a better work life balance. They are happy with the money as long as it enough to pay their bills.

Gone are the days when America was considered to be a land of opportunity. Jobs are currently scarce with more than half a million positions a month being discarded. The structure of job market has changed to a great deal with people who place a higher value of intangibles being rewarded more.  In these changing job scenarios one need to constantly reinvent themselves to be in demand.

Though the market looks gloomy there are still pockets of employment which offer good pay with benefits and security. There are many new avenues that have cropped up due to current economic scenario. Below are enlisted few of them

• Green technologies which may be at the root of the next economic boom given the current focus on climate change.
• The whole government set up under President Obama which is getting bigger making it a good employment option.
• Teaching is back in vogue with millions of workers looking for retraining and a young population.
• Infrastructure development is also very much in focus with much of the President’s $800 billion stimulus effort being focused on this.
• Risk assessment and controls are being strengthened in a fragile financial system and hence there is a huge demand for professionals trained in this field.
• With increasing proportion of population in the old age health care is another sector which is definitely in focus.

All these sectors also pay well above the median annual U.S. salary of $32,390. In the subsequent blogs we will enlist 10 such jobs which are expected to grow in the future and are well above the median annual pay of $32,390.