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Job Search Help in Georgia

With an ever-increasing unemployment rate and the weight of an economic recession, some residents may take comfort in the fact that they can receive help with their job search from the State of Georgia.

Gov. Sonny Perdue recently announced that the state is launching the "Be Work Ready" initiative. The new program will offer $50 or $100 gift certificates to those who earn a state Work Ready Certificate or who improve their job skills through free, online training. The money is meant to help offset the expenses of job searching.

“Georgia is leading the nation in workforce development and is committed to helping our citizens develop the skills that serve as the foundation to a successful job search,” Perdue said. “Be Work Ready is meant to inject confidence into Georgia’s unemployed population, cultivating a skilled and qualified workforce for business and driving economic development throughout the state.”

When an individual earns a bronze, silver or gold level Work Ready Certificate, they are eligible for a $50 gift certificate. Those who earn a platinum level certificate are eligible for a $100 gift certificate. anyone who improves their certificate in any way also is eligible for a $100 gift certificate.

The program is funded through $4 million in federal stimulus money from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. Those interested must be 18-years or older and unemployed. Those who have earned a work ready certificate since September 2008 also are eligible to apply.

The 9.3 percent of the state's population that was unemployed during April will be happy to hear this news. The state had a total non-farm employment of 3,936,900 workers during April, according to the United States Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics. This is down from 3,955,400 workers during March and a 4.7 percent decrease from last year.

Posted by: jcheesman on 5/28/2009 at 9:30 AM | Comments (0) | Permalink

Tags: job search, mjob

Perth Jobs

Perth jobs for public servants may soon offer high salaries.

With the WA Industrial Relations Commission recently granting a 5.5 percent pay raise to some of the state’s lowest paid employees, the government is now feeling to pressure to follow suit. The WAIRC’s decision to raise the minimum wage will take effect July 1st. It will take the area’s least paid workers from $528.40 per week to $557.40.

At this time negotiations are underway to determine what the increase in pay should be for the positions to be effected. Currently the government is offering state’s teachers a raise of about 3.9 percent.

Dave Robinson, secretary of UnionsWA believes it is high time for public servants to receive high compensation for work. “Anyone in WA knows how much prices for things like food and petrol have jumped, so wage rise does help those low-income earners to a significant extent,” he said.

Robison was pleased WAIRC’s decision to increase the salaries of those in the lowest earned income bracket in the state. He also strongly believes that it will effect the outcome of the government’s decision to boast its employees income by acting as a benchmark during the negotiations.

“The decision will automatically flow on to all state awards but does not affect current enterprise bargaining negotiations, including teachers, because public sector employee subject to these negotiations are already earning well above minimum rates,” Robinson said.

“It’s very clear from what the commission was saying in their decision that we’ve got a buoyant economy, it’s hard to attract and retain people and this was part of the reason for the increase," Robinson continued. "Those are the arguments that public servants and school teachers are running as well.”

Anne Gisborne, president of the State School Teachers’ Union, said that the WAIRC decision will be mentioned during her organization’s discuss with government officials. She believes that the fact that the amount awarded is higher than the first offer made to those with Perth jobs in education will help the union’s argument.

“As decisions come down that reflect increases significantly more than the one that was on the table from tge government —which was around 4 per cent — it certainly bodes well for the strength of our case.” she said.

The teacher’s union hopes to talk government officials into pay raises that would amount to more than 20 percent over the next three years. At the same time, members of the Community and Public Sector Union are asking for a 23 percent increase during the same time period.

According to the CPSU, the government’s best offer so far is to give most workers a pay increase of 4.3 percent a year, which is the same as the current rate of inflation.

Posted by: jcheesman on 4/16/2009 at 9:55 AM | Comments (0) | Permalink

Chicago Green Jobs Receive Funding, Legislation

While many industries throughout the country are suffering because of the current recession, the billions of dollars in federal stimulus money for energy efficiency and local legislation will help create Chicago green jobs.

Not only is the green-collar energy earth-friendly and geared toward saving energy, but jobs in the industry offer something for all skill levels, from high-tech engineers to entry-level caulkers and insulators. According to an article by the Chicago Tribune, the State of Illinois has imposed new green regulations.

"There are new state regulations requiring energy efficiency and renewable energy sourcing from state utilities," Jack Darin, director of the Sierra Club's Illinois chapter, said in the article. "That means the energy efficiency industry will see long-term growth beyond the stimulus bump."

Under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, millions of dollars in stimulus money has been made available for jobs training. this means community-based organizations like OAI, a workforce development agency, and the Local Economic and Employment Development Council are getting ready to help people.

During the next two months, various government agencies and non-profits will work to determine how Illinois' green recovery funding, estimated to come in at $4.3 billion, will be distributed. Many think a great amount of the money will go toward weatherizing and retrofitting homes and buildings to help make them more energy efficient.

"There are significant opportunities for low-skilled entry-level workers who haven't worked construction before but could learn how to blow in insulation or replace old windows with a relatively short training program," Jennifer Keeling, of the Chicago Jobs Council, said in the article.

The state also will have to respond to a demand for skilled and certified energy auditors. These workers, including energy raters, identify leaky ducts and inadequate insulation and recommend improvements for heating and cooling systems. The Illinois Association of Energy Raters Web site lists only 24 home energy raters who are certified through national standards.

One way to get in on the energy rating business is to find an apprenticeship with an energy rating company.

"It requires analytic skills, people skills and physical skills," Cheryl Pomeroy, with eZing Inc., said in the article. "It also helps if you have experience in the building trades, and if you don't mind getting dirty crawling around attics and crawl spaces."

Aside from upgrading existing spaces to be more energy efficient, Chicago promises to be a home to renewable energy like wind, solar, geothermal and biomass industries.

Posted by: jcheesman on 4/09/2009 at 12:43 PM | Comments (0) | Permalink

Tags: chicago green jobs, chicago jobs

Job Outlook Bleak for Legal Industry

The outlook for legal jobs isn't a very positive one.

Robert Half Legal recently released a survey that found staffing levels will stay the same at most law firms throughout the country. According to an article by the Boston Business Journal, about 65 percent of respondents said there will most likely be no change in staff levels at their law firms.

At the same time, one in every 10 lawyers said their firms would be reducing staff size during the coming year. One-fourth of lawyers surveyed said their firms would add workers during the next year.

The survey was conducted from Feb. 11 to 27 by an independent research firm and includes responses from 300 attorneys from large law firms and corporations.

The lack of expected hiring isn't good news for those in the legal industry. The current economy is making it hard for people in most industries to find jobs, but as people continue to have less money, lawyers continue to have fewer clients and less work.

In May 2007, the legal occupations industry employed 998,590 workers who earned an average salary of $88,450 per year, according to the United States Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics.

The legal occupations industry includes: lawyers; administrative law judges, adjudicators and hearing officers; arbitrators, mediators and conciliators; judges, magistrate judges and magistrates; paralegals and legal assistants; court reporters; law clerks; title examiners, abstractors and searchers and legal support workers.

Posted by: jcheesman on 3/26/2009 at 1:36 PM | Comments (0) | Permalink

Education Jobs Could be Helped by Economic Stimulus

President Barack Obama's proposed economic stimulus plan could help those with or those who are looking for education jobs.

According to an article by The New York Times, the stimulus plan would devote $150 billion to school districts, child care centers and university campuses. The money, which would be invested over two years, would more than double the Department of Education's budget. The money would help with school renovations, special education, Head Start and grants for college students.

Critics of the stimulus think the investment in education would take power away from state and local government and would not contribute to student needs. Earlier this year Congress set aside $79 billion to help states facing budget gaps to help avoid education cuts.

On top of that, one provision of the stimulus would temporarily increase subsidies to bankes in the guaranteed student loan program.

“This just continues the well-established tradition of welfare for the student loan industry,” Barmak Nassirian, an expert in student lending, said in the article.

If passed, the DIstrict of Columbia would see the most amount of money dedicated to each student at $1,289, closely followed by New York at $760. The least amount of money would be seen by New Jersey at $427 and Connecticut at $409. This does not necessarily mean the states with the greatest need will receive the most money.

"In recent years the federal government has contributed 9 percent of the nation’s total spending on public schools, with states and local districts financing the rest," the article notes. "Washington has contributed 19 percent of spending on higher education. The stimulus package would raise those federal proportions significantly.

"The Department of Education’s discretionary budget for the 2008 fiscal year was about $60 billion," the article adds. "The stimulus bill would raise that to about $135 billion this year, and to about $146 billion in 2010. Other federal agencies would administer about $20 billion in additional education-related spending."

The plan also would:

Posted by: jcheesman on 1/30/2009 at 2:21 PM | Comments (0) | Permalink