Although the unemployment rate (and maybe the economy in general) is improving, the change has been slow and somewhat inconsistent. The unemployment rate is different depending on the region or city in question, and varies quite dramatically by race, gender, and age, as well.
(Photo Credit: Canadian Film Centre/Flickr)
Similarly, unemployment data reveals varied circumstances for different industries. Recently 24/7 Wall St reviewed 2014 unemployment rates provided by the Bureau of Labor Statistics among workers in 564 occupations, ultimately compiling a list of occupations with the worst and best job security. Let’s take a look at today’s hardest jobs to keep.
1. Actors (median hourly pay – $21.04).
Unemployment rate: 32.7 percent
Acting has always been a tough way to make a living. But, a nearly one-third unemployment rate still seems like a terribly high figure just the same. The trouble here is probably what it’s always been – there are far more people who want to work as actors than there are roles available for them. Additionally, one job doesn’t necessarily lead to another in this field. All of these factors help to explain the extremely high unemployment rate among actors.
2. Telemarketers (median hourly wage – $9.97).
Unemployment rate: 21.8 percent
Telemarketers earn relatively low wages in comparison with other incomes reviewed for this report (a common trend among these hardest jobs to keep), and earnings in the profession are generally closely tied to job performance. Similar to other professions with low job security, there is a lot of pressure that comes along with this work. Perhaps that pressure is a contributing fact to the job’s high unemployment rate.
3. Helpers, construction trades (median hourly wage – $13.42).
Unemployment rate: 20.2 percent
Although this profession is expected to grow in the years to come, (due to our country’s aging infrastructure, more work is anticipated in the near future), today, about one in five construction helpers is out of work. This industry is arguably more linked to the economy than other professions, and housing development, for example, has fallen dramatically when compared with a decade ago. These workers are still feeling the effects of economic changes, and their unemployment rate proves it.
4. Graders and sorters, agricultural products (median hourly wage – $10.10).
Unemployment rate: 17.9 percent
According to Bureau of Labor Statistics predictions, agricultural grader and sorter positions are likely to continue to decline in the years to come. Perhaps the work is changing, and workers are being replaced by technology that can work through tasks more quickly, or maybe the projection is due to an anticipated decline in agriculture generally. Whatever the case, it is predicted that workers in this profession can anticipate continued difficulties.
Check out the full list of hardest jobs to keep for more information. Or, see the complete list of occupations to see how your profession measures up.
Tell Us What You Think
Which jobs are the hardest to keep? We want to hear from you! Leave a comment or join the discussion on Twitter.
Many people in my area even with 20 years of experience in construction can’t get jobs for more than $12/hour all because of the PLENTIFUL cheap labor. When outsourcing fails the GOVERNMENT insources (brought people in) It’s all about supply & demand. If there weren’t so many people coming here then it would be easier for EVERY citizen to get regular wage increases without a pink slip.
Excellent article! We can see the result of 1% money-grab via unethical corporate activities in all 4 items above. Wages that are unable to sustain a living certainly result in no movie nights-out (#1), no expendable income (#2). Even the 1% aren’t building new homes (#3) – they buy current properties at a bargain price. As for #4? It’s good that produce-to-market time decreases with technology, as it stays fresh and keeps prices down. However, I think many agriculture workers… Read more »
If you are a hard working, honest worker, willing to get your hands dirty, come to Wisconsin. If not, keep complaining about the lack of jobs while the rest of us make a decent living. There are lots of jobs available in construction for those who are willing to get their hands dirty, lift heavy objects or drag concrete from here to there in the process of building things. Construction firms will even apprentice (train) you for a couple years… Read more »
I worked in construction for 20 years and initially thought it would be a good field because the jobs could not be outsourced to “low wage countries” as the corporate euphemism goes. Boy was I wrong, they just brought the workers from the low wage countries into this country by the millions. Thanks U.S.A.! And now I have the privilege of knowing that 30% of the students being educated in my local school district are English as a second language… Read more »
BTW mobile phone intuitive text and spell check, fired. Lol
Wow you basically stared low skill, entry level employment is dwindling. Could you determine if immigrate workers and outsourcing and off shoring is impacting employment opportunities especially for entry level and young citizens. $100 says entry level and us citizens with 1-5 year experience work experience in their field struggle still today. Further many workers are performing roles they are over qualified and paid less or the same in today’s dollars as they were in 2007. But cost of Rent… Read more »
Wow you basically stared low skill, entry level employment is dwindling. Could you determine if immigrate workers and outsourcing and off shoring is impacting employment opportunities especially for entry level and young citizens. $100 says entry level and us citizens with 1-5 year experience work experience in their field struggle still today. Further many workers are performing roles they are over qualified and paid less or the same in today’s dollars as they were in 2007. But cost of Rent… Read more »
Working nonprofit can be hard. It all depends on whether or not you get the grants if you dont’ then you can’t stay open or employed.
The Telemarketer unemployment rate needs to quadruple. I work at home and they are a bane on my existence.