What’s the solution? According to the Time reporter, it’s as “simple” as an employment-emergency bill, which will:

guarantee jobless workers a basic set of rights for two to three years: health care, access to retraining, subsidized mentoring for careers in high-end manufacturing or health services.

One thing I did notice was that the article once again pointed to recession-proof/growth industries as education, health care and other service industires. It’s the same areas we have been touting for months here. (Just a reminder, the JobMonkey is a great source of information on these growth careers, including our extension section on nursing jobs, teaching ESL jobs, and green jobs.)

Okay, now, politics aside (is that possible these days), what do you think? Go read the article on Time Magazine, and then share your opinions with us!

As I’ve long been harping on here at the JobMonkey, the earliest growth will be in one of four fields: health care, education, government employment, and green business. In fact, these four fields have been some of the most stable over the past 8 months of the recession, posting positive growth numbers over a number of months despite record-high layoffs in nearly every other field.

Here are some of the highlights from BWeek’s article on landing one of these “jobs of tomorrow”.

Healthcare

• New report by President’s Council of Economic Advisors says that healthcare will be largest source of U.S. job growth over the next seven years (through 2016)
• 3 million new jobs will be added annually, including hundreds of thousands of nursing job opportunities
• For students, internships at a hospital or other health-care related organization are a great way to establish some credibility; for current job-seekers, a volunteer position is a great way to augment your resume and get your foot in the door.

Education

• American Recovery and Reinvestment Act is set to invest $90 billion in education, with half going to local school districts
• Students can gain classroom experience by working as a teacher’s aide or substitute teacher — neither of which require a college degree
• Seniors and current job-seekers should consider Teach for America

Green Collar Jobs

• Job growth within the green collar job industry is expected to exceed 50% by 2016 — four times the growth for all other sectors combined (yes, combined!)
• Billions in federal dollars being invested in renewable energy, energy efficiency, and energy research
• For students, industry-specific internships demonstrate genuine interest in the field

Federal Government Jobs

• Hundreds of thousands of federal government employees are expected to retire over the next five years
• Stimulus Plan will add 200,000 additional employees at Social Security Administration, the Veterans Affairs Department, Environmental Protection Agency, Defense Department and more
• Federal government jobs cover a range of 900 different occupations

Be sure to check out the rest of the Business Week article here. It really is a wealth of advice for landing a job in these turbulent times.

David Soto of The Princeton Review says student interest is driving colleges to create programs that offer training in sustainability. Two-thirds of students surveyed for the company’s recent “College Hopes and Worries” survey said a college’s “environmental commitment” would be a factor in where they applied.

According to the article, Arizona State University now has a School of Sustainability, which graduated its first class this past May. The School offers Bachelors of Arts, Bachelors of Science and Masters degrees, all of which take an interdisciplinary approach, blending science, economics, social studies and more.

Other schools, such as Bucknell University in Pennsylvania, are expanding their core requirements to include at least one class related to the environment. And at community colleges, such as Kalamazoo Valley, students are being trained for green collar jobs like installing and operating wind turbines.

Other popular green degree programs include:

• BA and BS in Sustainability

• MBA focused on operating sustainable businesses

• Combined MBA and MA in Environmental Studies

• Agricultural Technology with concentration in sustainable design

But the story in this niche newspaper more than likely represents initiatives being duplicated in cities and towns across America. Plus, as the article reports, the funding from the federal government is leveraging private spending — which ultimately will net a lot more job creation in the green field.

Are you interested in pursuing a new career in the green collar field? Check out JobMonkey’s section on Green Jobs.

Even worse news, say some economists, is the fact that so many of these jobs are in the manufacturing industry — a sector that is likely going to have be permanently altered as a result of this recession.

These jobs aren’t coming back anytime soon, if ever, say the experts. Which means that if you are dealing with a job loss in one of those sectors, it’s probably time to think about a career change. For some ideas, check out this recent post on recession-proof careers, including nursing jobs, education jobs and green collar jobs — all of which are fields the JobMonkey specializes in.

Amidst the grim news, there is a sliver of good news (good being an incredibly relative terms these days). Fewer people lost their jobs in February than in the two months previous, so maybe — just maybe — the tide is being stemmed?! Here’s hoping March’s unemployment numbers improve, too.

On Monday, I posted about four recession-proof careers and working for green industries definitely made the list. According to economic experts, as many as three to five million new green jobs will be created in the U.S. over the next decade.

If you are interested in learning more about going green to make green, check out JobMonkey’s extensive section on Green Collar Jobs. And if you think you might want to pursue your environmentalism on foreign soil, start your search with a look at JobMonkey’s section on Work Abroad Jobs.

The students were learning all about green fuel options in preparation for a possible career change.

The spotlight on the growing green economy has grown a lot brighter since President Obama was sworn into office. His Stimulus Package includes investment in green jobs, as a future-thinking way to employ American workers.

Having earned the Presidential stamp of approval, the future is looking pretty good for green industries. In fact, according to the ABC story, labor experts predict that as many 37 million new jobs will be created by energy efficient industries. (Of course, not everyone in the story was so certain that green industry will save America’s economy, pointing out that resolving the credit crisis has to be priority #1 right now.)

If you want to learn more about finding employment in the green economy, a good place to start with JobMonkey’s extensive section on green collar jobs. When you are ready to start your green job search, check out JobMonkey’s job listings. Select Green Jobs under Category. If you do that right now, you will find 112 current listings!

You should also check out GreenJobs.com — the leading site for the green job world. Like JobMonkey’s job board, you can search for jobs by category, key word, or geographic location. The site includes a number of international jobs, if traveling appeals to you. You can also upload your resume onto their site, so employers can find you, too.

Well, ever since that post, I can’t seem to log into my email without a news story about the green industry arriving in my inbox. I wanted to share some of these recent articles with you, because no matter what kind of job you do, the greening of our economy is going to be a top priority (or at least it should be!).

So while you’re working on resume writing and figuring out your next career move, take a few moments to ponder on how your skills can help contribute to the emergence of a greener economy.

The prolific author Thomas Friedman, whose newest book Hot, Flat and Crowded makes the case for why America needs a green revolution, has a spot-on op-ed piece in Saturday’s New York Times about the need to green the bailout of the financial markets.

He writes:

_{Indeed, when this bailout is over, we need the next president — this one is wasted — to launch an E.T., energy technology, revolution with the same urgency as this bailout. Otherwise, all we will have done is bought ourselves a respite, but not a future. The exciting thing about the energy technology revolution is that it spans the whole economy — from green-collar construction jobs to high-tech solar panel designing jobs.}

Friedman maintains (convincingly, I might add) that his expanded vision of the green collar industry is the future of the American economy.  It’s Roosevelt’s public works projects for the 21st century. And just like that great national back-to-work initiative, this one will also be paving new roads — this time toward the destination of sustainability.  It’s pretty awe-inspiring, actually.  So if you are wondering what direction to go with your career, I’d say green collar work is worth a long, hard look.

Friedman’s op-ed piece also introduced me to a new resource that I wanted to share with all of you. Greencollareconomy.com has an extensive job board that you’ll definitely want to check out.  But more than that, Green Collar Economy also has community forums and a B2B directory — both of which are a great place to start networking for your next green collar job.

In a similar vein, the DailyGreen.com reported on Saturday about rallies happening in some 600 cities across America, calling not only for green solutions to our energy crises, but also to our economic crisis.  Planned by Green Jobs Now, these rallies sent the message to local and national leaders: “We’re ready for green jobs now!”  Check your local Sunday paper to read coverage of your town’s Green Jobs rally.

Finally, don’t forget to check out JobMonkey’s extensive section on Green Collar Careers, and search for your next position on our Green Collar Job Board.

This week, we’ll be taking an in-depth look at green collar jobs — what green collar means, how many green collar jobs are available, and what you need to know to land a green collar job.

What does Green Collar mean?
According to San Francisco State University’s Raquel Pinderhughes, green collar jobs are "blue collar jobs in green businesses."  This cross-over definition seems to be the most widely accepted. In a New York Times piece, for example, the Chief of Apollo Alliance, an environmental group and labor union coalition, Lucy Blake agrees: “A green-collar job is in essence a blue-collar job that has been upgraded to address the environmental challenges of our country.” In the same Times article, the executive director of the Sierra Club, Carl Pope, said: “A green job has to do something useful for people, and it has to be helpful to, or at least not damaging to, the environment.”

Are you qualified for a Green Collar job?
Over at urbanhabitat.org, Raquel Pinderhughes blogs about her research interviews with employers providing green collar jobs in California. She lists 22 different sectors in which these jobs are available:

- Bicycle repair and bike delivery services
- Car and truck mechanic jobs, production jobs, and gas-station jobs related to biodiesel
- Energy retrofits to increase energy efficiency and conservation
- Green building
- Green waste composting on a large scale
- Hauling and reuse of construction materials and debris (C&D)
- Hazardous materials clean-up
- Landscaping
- Manufacturing jobs related to large scale production of appropriate technologies (i.e. solar panels, bike cargo systems, green waste bins, etc.)
- Materials reuse
- Non-toxic household cleaning in residential and commercial buildings
- Parks and open space expansion and maintenance
- Printing with non-toxic inks and dyes
- Public transit jobs related to driving, maintenance, and repair
- Recycling and reuse
- Small businesses producing products from recycled materials
- Solar installation
- Tree cutting and pruning
- Peri-urban and urban agriculture
- Water retrofits to increase water efficiency and conservation
- Whole home performance, including attic insulation, weatherization, etc.

Many people come to green collar jobs with a background in blue-collar work; higher education is not a requirement for the vast majority of these jobs. Employers are looking for strong workers who are willing to work hard with have good communication skills.

How many Green Collar jobs are there in America?
According to a 2007 study by the American Solar Energy Society, renewable energy and energy efficient industries currently account for 8.5 million jobs in the United States.  With federal policy to support green industries, that number could grow to as many as 40 million jobs, which is equivalent to 1 out of 4 workers, by 2030.

How much do Green Collar jobs pay?
Most green collar jobs pay by the hour, with rates ranging from minimum wage to $22/hour and more. Variances depend on job location and specialization.

More resources on Green Collar jobs:
- Green-Collar Jobs Overview @ Green For All
- Making Green While Working Green
- The Growth in Green Collar Jobs @ Newsweek

I’ll make it even easier for you every Wednesday, by bringing you three of the hottest jobs in JobMonkey’s very large pool of positions.

Art Director for AOL Music
This new music industry job is for a high-powered, experienced art director who can help the industry’s leading music site continue its success and branch out in new directions as well. The duties of the Art Director include overseeing all aspects of the design for the site, plus supervising the site’s new tour-tracking function, to be launched in ‘09. 

Wind Customer Manager, GE Infrastructure
This Green Collar Job in Schenectady, NY is looking for someone to serve as the GE’s primary contact person with its critical customers, to represent customer issues back to GE Wind, and to assist in the implementation of corrective actions for that customer. GE wants someone with a minimum of a Bachelor’s degree in Engineering plus 5 years of experience.

Political Associate   
This Government Job is actually a liaison position, based in New York at The D. E. Shaw Group.  Their new associate will study governmental and financial developments and make recommendations to senior partners. The group is looking for someone with at least a few years of full-time or internship experience in government, plus a stellar academic record.

Do you fit the bill for any of these jobs? Be sure to bookmark the job board in your field of interest, as JobMonkey updates ads daily.  Good luck in your jobs search!