As growing unemployment rates shake the nation, Utah remains a safe place to find a job8212;as long as you aren’t looking in the finance sector.
“Certainly, we’ve seen a tightening of the job market, especially with fewer job postings and interviews in finance,” said Kate Whetman, a career counselor at the U. “(Financial firms), with fall recruiting, often interview people and make job offers for next May. Some of those offers have been rescinded.”
The finance job market industry reached its peak late in 2006 and has lost 172,000 jobs since December of that year, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The average loss from December 2006 to August of this year was approximately 7,400 jobs per month. The finance sector lost 17,000 jobs in September alone, half of which dealt with securities and investment.
“The unemployment rate has been rising since the summer of 2007,” said economics professor Tom Maloney. “To keep up with a population growth of 150,000 we need to add so many jobs. We’re not only not keeping up with population growth, but we’re losing jobs.”
In August, the national unemployment rate rose from .4 percent to 6.1 percent, where it stayed through September. The national unemployment rate has not been this high since Sept. 2003. Utah has the fourth lowest unemployment rate in the nation, at 3.7 percent. Utah’s rate rose .9 percent from last year, from 2.8 percent in August 2007 to 3.7 percent this last August.
Elizabeth Tashjian, an economics professor, said Utah’s economy lags a few months behind the rest of the country. The job market in Utah looks good now, but eventually it will follow the same pattern as the national decline, she said.
Despite rising unemployment, some U students remain optimistic about Utah’s employment opportunities after graduation.
“Unemployment might rise a few percentage points, but assertive and pragmatic job seekers should be able to find work without too much trouble,” said Tim Vogeler, a senior in English and Asian studies. “(The job I find) might not be exactly what I expect, but there’ll be something.”
The Utah State Legislature might have saved Utahns from a bigger crisis down the road with budget cuts early in the fiscal year, Tashjian said.
“It’s a better time to make a cut, because it’s easier now. (The offices) can act responsibly early in the budget year, instead of getting a cut later and thinking, “Wait, we’ve already spent half our money,'” she said.
Amy Jensen, a senior in family and consumer studies, wants
to be an elementary school teacher. She currently works as a teaching assistant to gain experience, but almost didn’t get the job this fall because of state budget cuts. Jensen said that after the state cut the education budget, many of the first jobs to go were teaching assistant positions, common jobs for teaching students. Jensen’s school, however, receives federal funding under its Title I status and hired her with the extra funds.
Many students do not have a concrete plan for employment after graduation.
Patrick Reimherr, president of the Associated Students of the University of Utah and a senior in political science and economics, said it’s difficult to judge how the declining job market will impact him, even after daily discussions in his economics classes about the current downturn.
“Considering I have no definite plans, it hasn’t really hit home yet,” Reimherr said.