i! The Secretary of Labor gives this timely report on opportunities
for today's job seekers as well as for those
planning careers for tomorrow By W. WILLARD WIRTZ
U. S. Seerafocy af Labor
WHAT
WE face a paradox in
this country today:
there is persistent unem
ployment yet at the same
time there is a shortage of
workers qualified to fill ex
isting job openings!
President Kennedy, in submit
ting his comprehensive manpow
er report to Congress recently,
said: "Greater employment op
portunities and a work force
ever, more capable of making
use of such opportunities . . .
are among the foremost domes
tic needs of the nation." That
report went on to show that our
increasing rate of unemploy
ment about 5Vi percent of the
work force is our country's
greatest waste of its natural
resources.
Why is there this failure to
mesh available jobs with avail
able job seekers?
This paradoxical situation re
sults from factors that have
been operating for some time.
Among them are : the emergence
of new industries and products
and the decline of old ones; the
impact of new technologies, no
tably automation; shifts in the
location of industries; shifts in
market demands; the effects of
foreign competition ; and the en
try of a "bumper crop" of young
people into the labor force.
One thing we can do about
the situation is to realize that
today belongs to the educated
and trained and that tomorrow
the demand for skills will be
even greater. Beginning jobs
now go to high-school graduates;
and many, employers demand
even further education. Ma
chines are doing away with un
skilled work and with the jobs
once available to high-school
dropouts. Unemployment among
dropouts is about twice as high
as among high-school graduates
and three times as high as
among workers with some col
lege training.
In terms of income, a college
graduate can expect to earn
$180,000 more in his lifetime
than a high-school graduate,
while the latter can expect to
earn $100,000 more than the
THE
ARE
person who finished only gram
mar school.
The facts cry out: don't sell
yourself and your country short
by failing to get all the educa
tion you can.
What are the best jobs? For
those who are either job hunt
ing today or planning careers
for tomorrow, here is the most
up-to-date picture of the work
situation, based on Department
of Labor studies.
Good Jobs for High-School
Graduates : Those with special
skills acquired in vocational,
business, or high school, the
armed services, or apprentice
training programs have the
best opportunities.
Despite more automation in
offices, the need for skilled cleri
cal workers is expected to grow
by more than four million by
197S. Persons trained in book
keeping, stenography, business
machine operation, and compu
ter skills are in highest demand.
Jobs are increasing rapidly
for policemen, firemen, and other
protective services in urban and
suburban communities. Service
workers in health fields, such as
hospital attendants and practi
cal nurses, also are needed.
Sales jobs increase with popu
lation and spending, particu
larly in real estate and insur
ance. Top sales jobs are for
rocket components and compu
ters, but these require some
specialized training.
There also is a mounting need
for mechanics and repairmen
who can install and maintain
the complex appliances and ma
chines used in our society.
Technicians with vocational
or junior-college training are in
great demand. These include en
gineering technicians trained in
electronics, mechanics, chemis
try, metallurgy, and most other
areas of technology, as well as
medical technicians, nurses, and
dental hygienists.
Good Jobs for College
Graduates: This year's bachelor-degree
recipients generally
are receiving between $4,500
and $7,200 a year. The Federal
government, the largest single
employer of new college grad
uates, pays beginners with a
bachelor's degree $4,565 to $5,
540 a year, based on scholastic
achievement,
The demand for scientists and
engineers could average about
100,000 a year during this dec
ade. Chemists, engineers, mathe
maticians, and physicists are get
ting the highest starting salaries.
Teaching, the largest profes
sion, is plagued with persistent
shortages. Elementary and sec
ondary schoolteachers start at
from $400 to $450 a month, with
secondary teachers often earn
ing the higher amount
Also critically needed are phy
siotherapists, nutritionists, lab
oratory technicians, medical li
brarians, pharmacists, and clin
ical psychologists. Many social
workers are needed, too.
Lawyers and accountants are
in demand because of our more
complicated corporate structures
and tax laws and our increasing
middle-income population. Be
ginning positions average $6,
500 a year.
I have concentrated on jobs
in greatest demand, but indi
vidual interests, aptitudes, and
long-range goals are the primary
BEST
JOBS?
considerations in finding the
best job. With sufficient educa
tion, there is a tremendous vari
ety of careers in which to find
excellent job opportunities.
Tomorrow belongs to those
who face it honestly who see
change as an essential quality of
growth, who see growth as the
meaning of life, and who believe
that the future is a good idea.
COVER:
of fotiu to Mto tewww Ws ttoee Wwh
tetn-agers ptiogaphetl- t. tTrftVnw
bent on enjoying that Imt kit summer.
mw swraw ftwn am
Sond oil ocWIling totnmyfilooljftrii lei gMW VWAaV,
IJ3 NB Michigan Av... Chkooo I, ll" "
?d?'.11 'j"oni about oditorlol footum to loMlrfi Akrororo, Aroon IW.II. Mot london,
fom.hr Wortl,. 60 I. Mil. Si., Now To.. 22. N. T. Jk tyon, fW J. Opp.Minw, Hollr
IHJ. tOCIU.NO AND tOOKS. INC, in N. Michigan A..., Chicocj. !. III. All rlnh) wnd
ttNIIT V. HffYN Editor-i-CW
EN KAJTTMAN Cuniln Editor
DtXEtT NTXOIUON oaoio F.iMr
HIUIP DYMTIA Art Director
MILANII Dl PtOfT Pood Editor