Jobs in San Antonio on the Decline

According to a report from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, all other Texas markets, except for McAllen-Edinburg, suffered job losses year over year, including several thousand jobs in San Antonio.

Ninety-nine of the nation’s 100 biggest labor markets had fewer jobs in August 2009 than a year earlier, led by a loss of 230,000 jobs from the Los Angeles area.

Six markets, led by Los Angeles, lost at least 100,000 jobs during the 12-month span. The others were Chicago, Detroit, Atlanta, New York City and Phoenix. The biggest declines on a percentage basis occurred in the Detroit area, where 8.5 percent of the job base evaporated in a single year, and in Phoenix, with a drop of 7.9 percent.

The following are some of the biggest labor markets in America, ranked according to raw change in employment between August 2008 and August 2009. Each market’s percentage change is in parentheses:

McAllen-Edinburg, Texas, gain of 3,200 jobs (1.5%)
Jackson, Miss., loss of 1,200 jobs (-0.5%)
Baton Rouge, La., loss of 3,300 jobs (-0.9%)
El Paso, Texas, loss of 3,500 jobs (-1.3%)
Worcester, Mass., loss of 3,500 jobs (-1.4%)
Trenton, N.J., loss of 4,000 jobs (-1.7%)
Little Rock, Ark., loss of 4,600 jobs (-1.3%)
New Haven, Conn., loss of 4,900 jobs (-1.8%)
Columbia, S.C., loss of 5,100 jobs (-1.4%)
Huntsville, Ala., loss of 5,100 jobs (-2.4%)
Augusta, Ga., loss of 5,200 jobs (-2.4%)
Winston-Salem, N.C., loss of 5,900 jobs (-2.7%)
Des Moines, Iowa, loss of 6,100 jobs (-1.9%)
Madison, Wis., loss of 6,200 jobs (-1.8%)
Wichita, Kans., loss of 6,200 jobs (-2.1%)
Poughkeepsie, N.Y., loss of 6,400 jobs (-2.5%)
Syracuse, N.Y., loss of 6,500 jobs (-2.0%)
Omaha, loss of 6,800 jobs (-1.4%)
San Antonio, loss of 7,100 jobs (-0.8%)
Austin, loss of 7,200 jobs (-0.9%)
Bakersfield, Calif., loss of 7,300 jobs (-3.1%)
Chattanooga, Tenn., loss of 7,400 jobs (-3.0%)
Charleston, S.C., loss of 7,600 jobs (-2.5%)
New Orleans, loss of 7,700 jobs (-1.5%)
Tulsa, loss of 7,700 jobs (-1.8%)
Greenville, S.C., loss of 7,900 jobs (-2.5%)
Spokane, Wash., loss of 8,000 jobs (-3.7%)
Scranton-Wilkes-Barre, Pa., loss of 8,700 jobs (-3.3%)

San Antonio lost 7,100 jobs, a decline of .8% from the previous year.

Thousands Apply for Jobs in Tucson

The Arizona Daily Star has reported that a brand new Target received 16,000 applications from job seekers eager to apply for these jobs in Tucson.

The Target.com Fulfillment Center, 8940 E. Rita Park Drive, near Interstate 10 and Rita Road, is the Minneapolis-based company's first such center built from the ground up to Target's specifications. It is only one of three in the country dedicated solely to filling customer orders placed through its Web site.

The company's other two fulfillment centers are in Ontario, Calif., and Woodbury, Minn.

The Fulfillment Center held a grand opening in its new 975,000-square-foot Tucson warehouse last Friday. Elected and appointed government officials attended the opening.

The Tucson fulfillment center is operating just one shift, and at a fraction of its capacity. It began operations four months ago with 100 full-time workers, now employs more than 200 and is expected to gear up to 300 during the holiday peak period. Thousands more are expected to apply for jobs during this time period. It will be several years before the Fulfillment Center reaches full operating capacity.

Target spokesmen wouldn't say what the facility cost to build and equip, but the Pima County Assessor's Office set the full cash value of the land, building and improvements at $33.5 million for 2010.

The Arizona Star reported that a spokeswoman for TREO, Tucson Regional Economic Opportunities, which was involved in recruiting the Target fulfillment center, said Target received no tax waivers or other incentives to build here.

Target handed out five $3,000 checks at Friday's ceremony, one each to:
• The Vail Unified School District, for early-childhood literacy and the Vail Pride Day celebration.
• The Tucson Symphony, for free family concerts.
• Casa de los Niños, for a family violence-prevention program.
• Van Buskirk Elementary School in the Tucson Unified School District, for a library makeover.
• The Hope Network, for Hope Fest 2009.

Target has 1,719 stores in 49 states nationwide. Vermont is the only state without a Target store.

Airline Jobs in Milwaukee

According to MilwaukeeBizJournals.com, Republic Airway Holdings is now pitting three airlines' hometowns in a bidding war for at least 400 jobs, which could create new jobs in Milwaukee.

Frontier Airlines is ready to exit bankruptcy in the hands of Midwest Airlines owner Republic Airways Holdings Inc.

Frontier CEO Sean Menke gave an exclusive interview about the deal to Denver Biz Journals. Apparently Denver, Indianapolis and Milwaukee all are competing for the jobs.

Menke, who is overseeing both Frontier and Midwest operations, said he is looking for cost savings and incentives on where to locate heavy maintenance and parts warehousing jobs now at Denver International Airport.

Frontier and its soon-to-be owner Indianapolis-based Republic are now deciding whether to relocate 400 or more positions, some 250 of which are based in Denver, as part of their consolidation. Those jobs include the Las Cruces positions.

“It’s an interesting sort of dilemma that the politicians are in here ... There’s been a lot of questions about whether they’re going to step up and support the company,” Menke said told the Denver Business Journal. “With the city and county, it’s been a relationship that’s been strained at times ... We’ve asked and we’ve pushed, and we’ll see what they come up with at the end of the day.”

BizJournals said that state and city officials are putting together a package of incentives that includes about $1 million in job-creation and job-training tax credits. The deal also includes cost reductions on things such as facility leases at the airport, which are meant to offset a city tax on aircraft maintenance parts that some airline officials have called onerous.

Republic CEO Bryan Bedford, who is currently the chief executive of Midwest, has said he’s looking to make a decision on where to locate jobs quickly after receiving the three cities’ packages.

Menke said, “We are working on the platform of a new company, and we have to ensure we’re doing the right things in terms of incentives and cost reduction,” he said. “Because if you make an emotional decision, it may feel good from an emotional standpoint, but it may not be the best decision.”

Minimum Wage Increase Costs Arizona Jobs

A bump in Arizona's minimum age, now up to $7.25 per hour from $6.95 since last January, is costing Arizona jobs.

According to AZBiz.com, HR Wise, a professional employer organization in Mesa, estimated the 35-cents per hour bump in the minimum wage cost businesses in the state $1.2 billion more per year. The figure includes matching taxes business pay the government.

The increase came three months after the collapse of the financial markets.

This change meant that Arizona's minimum wage in 2009 exceeded the federal minimum wage through the first half of 2009. The federal minimum wage increased to $6.55 per hour in July of 2008 and then again in July of 2009 to $7.25 per hour.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the Phoenix metropolitan area has lost 7.8 percent of its jobs over the last year. No other metropolitan area has lost a higher percentage of jobs.

Many businesses couldn’t afford that $1.2 billion and were forced to terminate or reduce the hours of their employees.

The article states that the consumer price index, upon which Arizona basis its minimum wage increases, has decreased every month this year from what it was a year ago. The August-to-August drop was 3.25 percentage points, the U.S. Labor Department announced last week.

Arizona’s minimum wage law has no provision for being reduced.

It might sound paradoxical to say that raising the minimum wage in a state would lead to job loss, but that is what's happening in Arizona. Instead of reveling in an increased standard of living, many workers in Arizona are now jobless and are forced to fall in line with the thousands already competing for jobs.

Another city in Arizona, Tucson, has lost 7.5 percent of its jobs last year, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. It is second only to Phoenix in terms of most severe job loss percentage in the nation. Detroit comes in third.

Michigan voted to bump its minimum wage up to $6.95 per hour in October 2006 and subsequently increased it twice more so that it now stands at $7.40 per hour.

Outplacement Firms Face Performance Reviews

Outplacement firms, many of which have enjoyed a surge in business since the recession began, have come under fire for providing job seekers with standardized services that provide little value.

According to an article on WSJ.com, businesses that are anxious to shed former employees impose time limits that hamper effectiveness. Even though employers dole out substantial fees to these agencies, many of them don't track whether outplacement even works.

Executives estimate about 40% of workers offered outplacement services don't show up or ask for cash instead.

The article said that some industry participants are troubled by reports of mass-produced résumés, canned job advice and lackluster counseling.

WSJ noted that outplacement services arose in the 1960s to provide out-of-work managers with an office, a phone and a secretary. Layoffs were less common and participants needed to battle the stigma of losing a job.

By the 1990s, outplacement firms expanded to serve everyone from CEOs to hourly workers. Providers competed by lowering prices, offering volume discounts to corporate clients for an increasingly standardized menu of workshops and referral services.

Now, outplacement is a standard feature of corporate layoffs. More than two-thirds of 265 U.S. employers with layoffs during the past two years offered outplacement, at an average cost of $3,589 an employee, according to a June survey for The Wall Street Journal by the American Management Association and Institute for Corporate Productivity.

Outplacement generally begins the day an employee is terminated. Providers often send staff members to each work site to explain their services. The process helps companies efficiently show employees the door, and gives the outplacement firms a chance to market themselves.

The article said that employees usually gain access to online seminars, group workshops and individual time with a coach, for periods ranging from a month to more than a year. Programs for executives, priced around $10,000 and up, generally provide a private office and more coaching time; those for midlevel managers or clerical workers, priced $5,000 or below, may offer a chair and phone at a shared table.

New Ballpark Expected to Boost Oregon Jobs

Portland Beavers owner Merritt Paulson has released an economic impact study that shows how his proposed Beaverton baseball park would generate 285 Oregon jobs.

According to PortlandBizJournals.com, the park would also add more than $20 million in annual economic output across three counties.

The study evaluated the economic impact of the $45 million ballpark, taking into account its construction and the 72 annual home baseball games.

According to the study:

• Construction alone would generate 787 jobs across Multnomah, Washington and Clackamas counties. It would produce nearly $30 million in income and wages, and generate nearly $100 million in economic output.

• Annually, the stadium will produce 285 jobs, would generate around $8 million in income and wages, and more than $20 million in economic output across all three counties.

1 out of 4 Phoenix Residents Lack Health Insurance

According to AZCentral.com, one in four Phoenix residents lack health insurance, putting Arizona's largest city among the bottom dwellers among big cities on health coverage.

The article cited a new U.S. Census report documenting more than 381,000 Phoenix residents who lack health insurance.

The report also showed that overall, 19 percent of Arizonans do not have health insurance. The survey encompassed all types of insurance, including private coverage, employer-provided plans as well as those who take government insurance such as Medicare, for those 65 and older, and Medicaid, the joint federal-state insurance program for the poor and disabled.

According to the article, hospitals such as St. Joseph's Hospital and Medical Center in Phoenix treat a large amount of uninsured patients daily. In July and August, St. Joseph's provided $11 million in free care to those who could not afford their hospital bills.

St. Joseph's representatives say they expect the ranks of the uninsured in the Phoenix region will only grow as more people lose health coverage through COBRA.

The census figures show the economy has affected health care in other ways. For instance, for the first time this decade, the number of foreign-born residents declined in the United States. The numbers of foreign-born residents in Phoenix also declined.

Nevada Jobs

Although the state has seen an increasing unemployment rate and has continued to lose workers, there are still many opportunities to find Nevada jobs.

During July, the State of Nevada saw its unemployment rate increase from 11.9 percent to 12.5 percent, which was higher than the national unemployment rate at the time of 9.4 percent. The state hasn't seen its unemployment rate decrease since December 2005, when it went from 4.3 percent to 4.2 percent.

Nevada had a total non-farm employment of 1,187,300 workers during July, according to the United States Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics. This is down from 1,193,000 workers during June and a 6.4 percent decrease from last year.

While those statistics might not sound the most promising, there are several places to look for jobs in Nevada. For instance, the state is home to nine Fortune 500 companies, seven in Las Vegas and two in Reno.

The Fortune 500 companies in Reno include International Game Technology and Amerco. The Fortune 500 companies in Las Vegas include:

• Harrah's Entertainment
• MGM Mirage
• Las Vegas Sands
• NV Energy
• Wynn Resorts
• Southwest Gas
• Boyd Gaming

In 2007, the Bureau of Economic Analysis found Nevada to have a total state product of $127 billion. That being said, where you live in Nevada also can make a difference as to what type of jobs you will find in the area.

The state had a per capita personal income of $39,853 during 2007, ranking it 16th in the nation. The 10 richest places in Nevada, based on per capita income, include:

• Incline Village-Crystal Bay
• Kingsbury
• Mount Charleston
• Verdi-Mogul
• Zephyr Cove-Round Hill Village
• Summerlin South
• Blue Diamond
• Minden
• Boulder City
• Spanish Springs

Arizona Jobs Armed by Local Military

The military industry - one that is often overlooked and under-appreciated - has long had a strong presence and accounted for many Arizona jobs.

The state's military industry accounts for about 45,568 jobs and produces $3.2 billion in direct economic output. Overall, the industry and the businesses it supports is responsible for creating 96,328 jobs and producing $9.1 billion in economic output.

The Arizona Department of Commerce recently released the "Economic Impact of Arizona's Principal Military Operations," a report prepared by The Maguire Company in collaboration with ESI, detailing the importance of the state's military industry.

The five major military installations in Arizona include: Davis-Monthan Air Force Base in Tucson, the Army Intelligence Center & Fort Huachuca in Sierra Vista, Luke Air Force Base in Glendale, the Army's Yuma Proving Ground and Marine Corps Air Station Yuma.

The state also is home to four National Guard operations, including Air National Guard's 161st Air Refueling Wing, Air National Guard's 162nd Fighter Wing, Army National Guard Papago Park and Western Army National Guard Aviation Training Site in Silverbell.

Military contractors, such as the Boeing helicopter facilities in Maricopa County and the Raytheon facilities in Pima County, were not included in the survey, but are nonetheless important to the local economy.

The study found that during 2005, Arizona's military industry employed a total of more than 45,500 workers. That's broken down into 19,402 active duty workers; 7,471 reserve workers; 1,198 rotational workers; 3,292 military students; and 14,205 civilian employees. There are also 45,328 military retirees within a 50-mile radius of Arizona and 11,332 linked retirees.

When it comes to pay, the military industry in Arizona shells out more than $2.1 billion to its workers in annual salary. Active duty workers receive the highest pay, at $938.4 million, followed by civilians at $748.4 million, linked retirees at $245.3 million, reserves at $107.3 million, students at $71.2 million and rotational workers at $13.9 million.

The military industry also injects more than $2.6 billion into the local economy through contract spending.

Of the workers employed because of the military industry, but not directly through the industry, more than 24,000 are in the service sector; more than 14,000 are in retail trade; almost 3,000 are in the construction industry; almost 1,000 are in the manufacturing industry; and thousands more are distributed throughout the economy.

As a whole, the military industry accounts for an annual total of $228.8 million in sales tax, $85.9 million in property tax and $86.8 million in income tax for a total of $401.4 million.

Online Personality Tests Before Employment

Many people applying for new jobs often have to undergo online personality test or other personality tests before they're offered a position.

While most job seekers don't have a problem taking such a test, it's not uncommon for people to try to skew the results of a personality questionnaire used as a job screening tool.

"Some of the instruments have (distortion) checks on them," Jerry Stilson, a partner with Cenera and a trained psychologist, told Canada.com. "So, if you distort the results, it'll show ... but are they foolproof? No. People get good at this."

A lot of candidates may view a personality test as a sort of game and many professionals don't blame job seekers for trying to skew results.

"They're what we call data generators," Stilson said. "They can give you insights into yourself. And it'll help you become more aware of something you need to work on, but you need to make the decision to accept that or not."

In fact, it's a common theory that personality tests often do more harm than good, as concise tests can lead to companies losing perfectly good candidates. The tests are even illegal in some places.

In Alberta, Canada, employers can't ask people to go through psychological testing before becoming employees. While candidates still might be asked to complete a test, they can feel free to decline.

Criminal Background Check Give Aways

One criminal background check company recently announced its plan to give away millions of dollars in free background checks.

IntegraScan, one of the largest online background check companies, will give away $7.5 million in free background checks to nonprofits and youth organizations during 2010. The downturn in the economy has left many organizations unable to afford in-depth background checks.

In July, the company kicked off what has been called the Kids Safe Program, which offered $500,000 per month in free background checks to youth organizations throughout the country. Thanks to the success of the program, IntegraScan has given away background checks to almost 1,000 organizations.

Fortunately, the company has reported the free background checks have been responsible for catching several sex offenders and child abusers, as well as numerous drug, alcohol and violence related charges.

The background check program is available to any nonprofit or youth organization within the country. There are no additional requirements or speculations and organizations are encouraged to apply for the grants as soon as possible.

The company also is asking parents and volunteers to speak with their organizations leaders, not only in order to let them know about the new innovative program, but also to alert them to the overall importance of background checks.