Jobs Outlook Report By Challenger, Gray & Christmas For 2009 Bleak

December 22, 2008 10:01 a.m. EST

Chicago, IL (AHN) - In its 2009 jobs market outlook report Monday Challenger, Gray & Christmas, Inc. said that another million jobs would likely be lost in an economy that many say is the worst crisis America has seen since the Great Depression.

Additional job cuts are expected in response to continued weak consumer and corporate spending, the executive outplacement service giant said.

Challenger, Gray & Christmas also said that the incoming president's announced plans for an economic stimulation package that will include job creation will take time to have an effect and more job cuts will come before that can happen.

Job losses are expected to reach a five-year high by year's end and some economists predict that before conditions improve that unemployment could rise from the current 6.7 percent to as high as 9.0 percent, a number not seen since 1983.

"It will take time for any stimulus measures to work their way through the economy. Even if the measures work, it could take several more months for consumers and corporate America to regain confidence and begin spending again," said John A. Challenger, chief executive officer of Challenger, Gray & Christmas, in an emailed statement.

Challenger noted that the beginning of expansion does not immediately bring jobs. At this point there are 2.2 million people who are officially counted by the Bureau of Labor Statistics as being unemployed for six months or longer, but millions more have given up on looking for work.

Telecommuting is expected to increase because it costs employers less to have employees work from their homes than it does to supply office space for them.

The company also saw other trends for job seekers to rely on the Internet for more than posting resumes, Challenger said there was also a move for job seekers to post videos of themselves on YouTube, much like people used to look for work wearing signboards and handing out resumes.

Other significant forecasts for workplace trends included:

• The number of unemployed Americans growing through 2009, leveling out in 2010 and finally decreasing in 2013.
• Public works programs in President-elect Barak Obama's proposed proposed $850 billion to $1 trillion economic stimulus package helping unemployed blue collar workers in construction and some manufacturing jobs, but not helping unemployed white collar real estate workers, lawyers, insurance and banking workers.
• Alternatives to layoffs, including forced vacations, short furloughs, shorter workweeks and cuts in perks.
• Increased numbers of jobs in government or teaching, that won't pay as much as some of the former white collar jobs lost in the private sector, but that will provide employment opportunities for accountants, information technology specialists, economists, analysts, managers, etc.
• Social networking use will increase as a tool to find jobs.
• More people will go to college or head back there for more degrees.
• Fewer Americans will vacation, and if they do their vacations will be shorter.
• Small to medium firms will benefit by being able to hire talented professionals who once worked for larger firms.

The Challenger & Gray Outlook for Industry is:

• Growth is expected in construction because of Obama's proposed stimulus package, with as many as 2 million jobs created.
• Almost half of the 30 fastest growing jobs are in health care.
• Pharmaceutical companies are expected to see a continued growth in employment.
• Education is expected to grow an additional 2.8 million teaching jobs over the next eight years despite the current downturn because the economic downturn has strained government budgets.
• Energy is expected to see slower job gains short term, but create jobs long term.
• Discount retail will endure and see some growth while non-discount retail continues to slump.
• Natural resources and agriculture, especially in the area of biofuels, will ensure job growth in this sector.