Again in thinking about our students and the struggles they face in growing and learning the importance of making good decisions, we made an interesting discovery while doing some occupational research.
Many of you are familiar with Man Power. It is a company with a strong web presence that specializes in employment related issues. We have found them to be nearly as reliable as BLS in their career data.
According to ManpowerGroup, the number #1 occupational group in demand both in the US and internationally is SKILLED TRADES. This is a broad category in today’s labor market. Again our community colleges are in the lead in this arena. Laney Community College, through its Career and Technical Education Department, provides us with announcements similar to the one below.
An example from Laney:
The Industrial Maintenance certificate at Laney College is a 9-month full-time program (August 2015- May 2016) training students to be entry-level maintenance machinists. Training is in machining, welding, and electrical work. English fluency and 8th grade level math skills are necessary. Tuition and books for the program are less than $2000, and financial aid and fee waivers may be available for those that qualify. These are college courses and you will receive over 30 hours of college credit. The program begins on August 17th, 2015. Note: This training can lead to positions with Chevron and other utility type industries who are seeking employees due to many current employees retiring. At Oil refiners such as Chevron, starting salaries are from $75,000 to $100,000 dollars annually.
Based on research from Manpowergroup.us the following are the top ten career areas in demand:
- Skilled Trade Workers
- Restaurant and Hotel Staff
- Sales Representatives
- Teachers
- Drivers
- Accounting and Finance Staff
- Laborers
- IT Staff
- Engineers
- Nurses
To learn more go to:
http://www.manpowergroup.us/campaigns/talent-shortage-2014/
