Unemployed Angelenos Still Love LA Despite High Jobless Rate
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) — Even with a bleak job market, the City of Angels is still a haven for the unemployed, according to a new survey.
Nearly three-quarters of Los Angeles residents - 73 percent - are not considering moving out of the city to find a job, in spite of its 9.9 percent unemployment rate, according to data from a recent survey conducted by recruitment firm Adecco Staffing US.
Only 26 percent of non-working L.A. residents remain confident of finding a job within the next five months, and just 37 percent say they feel confident they will find one within the next six to 12 months, the survey found.
Adecco president Joyce Russell told KNX 1070 NEWSRADIO young people in the city are finding it difficult to land a job.
Adecco president Joyce Russell
"About a third of respondents between the ages of 18 and 34 in Los Angeles reported being unemployed and needing help in the area of employment," Russell said.
Among the challenges to finding a job, 18 percent cite Los Angeles' challenging public transportation system and 26 percent say it's too expensive to travel to and from interviews. Residents also feel a disconnect between the jobs available and the skills they have acquired.
In fact, 34 percent of Angelenos say job applicants do not have the right skills and training for jobs that are currently available, while 29 percent of respondents believe job seekers lack the skills and training for the new jobs and industries that are coming to the area.
When it comes to obtaining those skills, residents feel the state government should actively support the effort. Nearly one-fifth (19 percent) of Angelenos said they think the state should offer free job training programs to improve the employment situation in L.A.
Residents also feel the government should take more of a role in incentivizing businesses to hire and train local job candidates (26 percent) and encourage businesses in other industries such as technology and healthcare to come to the city (25 percent), according to the survey.
Russell said candidates need to focus on separating themselves from the pack when applying for a job.
"I think that strong resume remains the gateway to getting a great job, so we're finding spelling errors, going on the interview and then looking at their phone during the interview, or showing up a day late for the interview," she said. "So we're giving them some of those skills to help them find those jobs."
To offer Angelenos some help with their job search, Adecco will be hosting a "careerathon" on April 30 in Santa Monica. For more information, visit Adecco.com.
