December 14. 2005
^ J J o r tla n ò ffibserncr
Page A3
Prospects for Jobs Finally Improve
St. Johns.
Considering the num berof people in the center, one
might assume jobs are still scarce, but according to Sue
To accurately assess the local employment scene is
Fletcher, communications manager for WSI, people
to take in unique factors. Elsewhere, when recessions
aren't merely looking for work, they’re upgrading and
hit home, people tend to leave in search o f employ
seeking new careers.
ment. Not the case here. Instead of leaving in droves,
Fletcher said when the economy was awful people
many new residents poured in from out of state.
took whatever jobs were available. Now there’s more
O regon’s recession also lasted longer than the na
competition in the workforce and people are looking
tional one, beginning in December 20(M) and ending in
for better training.
June 2003
Abdul M ajidi, M etro One Stop m anager, agrees.
The last time the state was economically strong in
His agency has seen m ore em ployers hiring, but
1996, Oregon was creating tens of thousands of jobs
only a slight decrease in the num ber o f people
and offsetting the impact from new residents. During
through its doors because o f all the jo b seekers
the past five years, population growth slowed a bit, but
w anting new skills to keep up with the im proving
the recession limited new jobs and unemployment
labor
environm ent.
jumped.
"W e’re working hard because people deserve bet
"Oregon has always had a faster growth rate than
ter,” he said, “and it is getting better.”
the United States as a whole,” said Christian Kaylor,
Portland’s Hispanic population also factors into
workforce analyst for the state Employment Depart
the innercity’s changing employment landscape. His
ment. “It’s been a challenge for a number of years, but
panics make up O regon's fastest growing community;
w e’ve always done well. People want to live here and
growing by 275 percent in 2(X)0alone. Now 13 percent
our economy is resilient.”
of Oregonians are Hispanic, making up 10 percent of
The city ’ s racial ly and economically diverse neigh
the workforce in 2003.
borhoods have unique challenges within Portland’s
Amidst the latest optimistic figures in employment
economy. Many have been hit harder that the state as
brings a warning for January and its inevitable decline
a whole, but at the same time there has been new
of 18,000 to 24,000jobs across all industries, officials
development and a dramatic demographical change.
said. Also, the unemployment rate isn’t a comprehen
On a Monday morning last week, Metro One Stop
sive picture of everyone out o f work. It’s a calculation
career center, at Northeast 42nd and Killingsworth,
o f people actively looking for work, excluding those
steadily filled up with job seekers using computers to
who haven't looked for work in the past year and
search for job openings and work on their resumes.
discouraged workers who believe there is not a job
Others found job openings from large employers posted
available for them.
on the wall.
State figures show there were 392,000 discouraged
The Portland Metropolitan Workforce Training
photo by I saiah B ouie /T he P ortland O bserver workers in October. Kaylor said some economists feel
Center, a service of Worksystems, Inc. operates two Belinda Russell, a laborer for Lease, Crutcher and Lewis Construction Co., directs traffic away from
if marginally attached and discouraged workers were
north and northeast career centers, the Metro One work on a new building at Portland State University. Steady employment in construction when there
counted, the unemployment rate would be one full
Stopofficeon Killingsworth, and Goal Post, located in is usually a decline this time o f year is an indication o f an improving local economy.
percent higher.
continued
from Front
All Girls and All Boys Schools Eyed
Public to hear
proposals
Thursday
Green School, 6031 N. Montana
Ave.
One of the options considered
by acommunity committee is for an
all-boys school for grades 7-12 at
Jefferson and an all-girls program
School Superintendent Vicki for grades 7-12 at Harriet Tubman
Phillips plans on presenting recom Middle School. Other options will
mendations to redesign the so- be presented to the community at
called Jefferson Cluster, the local Thursday’s meeting.
schools feeding into Jefferson High
Phillips has not made her deci
School in north and northeast Port sion on any recom m endations,
land, during a public meeting on school o fficials say. She had
Thursday at 6:30 p.m. at Ockley planned to go to the School Board
on Monday, but the agenda item
was postponed until Jan. 9 to give
the community a chance to hear the
proposal and comment on them.
Board members will also be attend-
ing
T h u rs d a y ’s
m eetin g .
Earlier proposals to add seventh
and eighth grades at Jefferson drew
opposition, mainly over concerns
about mixing older boys and girls
with younger boys and girls.
School District’s spokesperson photo by M ark W ashington /T hf . P or i land O bserver
Brenda Gustafson says, “Nothing Harriet Tubman Middle School in north Portland could become an all-girls junior and senior high
school. It's ju s t one o f several proposals going to the community in a public meeting on Thursday.
is official or finalized yet.”
NEW S E A S O N S
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ra is e d m e a t a n d p o u ltry , in c lu d in g m a n y lo c a lly g ro w n o p tio n s .
C o n s id e r th e s ta n d in g rib r o a s ts fr o m C o u n try N a tu ra l B e e f,
a c o - o p o f fa m ily fa rm s . C h e c k o u t o u r ra n g e fe d le g s o f
la m b g ro w n b y K a th y P a n n e r in R id d le , O re g o n . H a m lo v e rs
will b e d e lig h te d w ith o u r h o m e m a d e , n itrite -fre e m a p le c u re d
h a m s . If y o u p re fe r s e a fo o d , w e e n c o u r a g e y o u to ta k e h o m e
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a v a ila b le a s w ell. T a ste o u r o ffe rin g s , m a k e y o u r s e le c tio n , a n d
w e ’ll h e lp y o u p la c e y o u r o rd e r a n d g e t a t le a s t o n e b ig ite m
o ff y o u r h o lid a y “to d o " list. J o in u s S a tu rd a y a n d S u n d a y fr o m
1 1 :0 0 a m u n til 5 :0 0 p m .
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