Every day brings new news of the current employment picture in America. Most of it’s negative, as seen this week at Punk Rock HR and the uber-depressing Layoff Tracker. Nevertheless, there were some bright spots in the blogosphere this week! Toby Dayton’s Diggings blog discusses news that the banking and finance sector saw a 24% increase in new jobs in January. Bet you didn’t see this one coming - eye care is another career field on the move, according to stats published at CollegeRecruiter.com. Ophthalmology ranked third on a recent list of the 30 fastest growing occupations in America, with projected 36% job growth through 2016.

Additionally, an increased number of job listings were seen in the following industries:

• Technology
• Aerospace
• Aviation
• Defense
• Government
• Legal
• Technology

Not faring so well were the following industries, where job listings declined:

• Internet
• Non-profit
• Agriculture
• Forestry/Fishing
• Retail
• Engineering
• Architecture

And the industry faring the worst right now (drum roll, please) is Health and Medical. There, new job listings were down 24,347 in January, while total job listings were down 34,135. If your industry is among the unlucky ones hit by waves of layoffs lately, Jessica Lee at Fistful of Talent has great advice for HR and corporate communications staff to handle the situation professionally.

Speaking of layoffs, don’t forget about RiseSmart’s Transition Concierge Service, which has numerous benefits for corporations and their employees when going through tough times. During staffing cutbacks, let your employees know you care by giving them custom resumes and cover letters, professional job search assistance and career advice, all with consistently branded messaging at a budget-friendly price.

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