This post was contributed by a community member. The views expressed here are the author's own.

Business & Tech

Unemployed and Looking for Work? In Maryland, You've Got a Shot

If you're in technology or engineering, you might have an even bigger shot. Despite Maryland's 7.1 percent unemployment rate, local business leaders say they are cautiously optimistic.

The jobs forecast for 2011: cloudy with a chance of full-time positions, especially in technology and engineering.

That’s according to local business leaders and a recent jobs report by employment site CareerBuilder.com.

Maryland's unemployment rate began a steady ascent in June 2008, when the figure was 4.4 percent. In December 2009, the rate — not seasonally adjusted for annual occurrences like Christmas — was 7.1 percent. It fluctuated throughout the following year, ending once again at 7.1 percent in December 2010. That's compared to more than 9 percent nationally. Unemployment rates in most individual Maryland counties either remained the same or dropped.

“I think we’ve seen the worst of it, and we’re going to come out,” said Denise Rickell, manager of the Carroll County Business and Employment Resource Center. “It’s a slow process, but it’s moving forward at least.”

Moving forward it is, at least at the national level, according to Career Builder’s 2011 Job Forecast. After surveying more than 2,400 hiring managers and human resources professionals nationwide, the report found almost 25 percent of them plan to hire full-time, permanent employees in 2011 — up from 20 percent in 2010 and 14 percent in 2009. About 7 percent plan to decrease staff, compared to 9 percent in 2010 and 16 percent in 2009, while 58 percent expect no change and 11 percent are unsure.

Along with technology and engineering, top areas for recruitment include sales, information technology, customer service, business development and marketing.

The report also states that 13 percent of employers expect to hire part-time employees in 2011, up from 11 percent in 2010 and 9 percent in 2009.

In Maryland, county business leaders are cautiously optimistic.

“Employers are hiring,” Rickell said. “There’s no real big boom, but they are hiring.”

According to the U.S. Department of Labor, between December 2009 and December 2010 unemployment in Baltimore County rose from 7.5 to 7.8 percent, while Carroll County dropped from 6.4 percent to 5.9 percent and Montgomery from 5.3 to 5.2 percent. In Prince George’s, the rate stayed at 7 percent.

An article in the U.S. News and World Report, citing College Park as one of the best places to retire, stated that unemployment in College Park was at 6.9 percent in 2009.

Interested in local real estate?Subscribe to Patch's new newsletter to be the first to know about open houses, new listings and more.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

The views expressed in this post are the author's own. Want to post on Patch?