Job Market Prospects in 2010
Is the economic climate easing, and are we likely to see a better recruitment market over the next few months? At the moment the signals are mixed, which means that job security, or for many people the chances of getting back into work, remain precarious.
Of the leading economic indicators, although unemployment is still rising it is doing so at a much slower rate, suggesting that it will soon level off and ultimately increase. The housing market seems to be improving which is always a good sign.
But there is still plenty of bad news out there. Significantly, it looks as if shops will have a bad Christmas season. This is important because, although the cause of the recession lies in the financial sector it was the downturn in consumer spending that changed things from a credit crunch to a recession. The idea was that by lowering mortgage and interest rates, so that we all had more disposable income, consumer spending would increase and the economy would be saved. Instead we all chose to save and repay debt. Consumer confidence remains low and is still decreasing.
The end of a recession is the time when many small companies fail, usually more than during the depths of the downturn itself. So even if we are coming out of recession the picture is not rosy.
All in all, the prospects for the labour market in the first part of 2010 remain shaky. So it is important to persevere with a defensive career management strategy. Set realistic career goals and a strategy for achieving them. Keep your CV up to date, Make sure your networks are active and if you are job hunting, make as much use of your contacts as you can. If you feel that you have got as much from your network as you can hope to, then you need to expand it. It is not easy but it is the best you can do.
Things will get better. But perhaps not as quickly as we expected.
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Tags: Consumer Confidence, Job Security, recession, unemployment
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