Laid-off workers learn new trades

In the worst labor market in 14 years, Americans from auto workers to financial analysts are considering a career change in hopes of landing a job. Many job seekers are getting specialized training as a way to break into a new industry. Vocational, technical and trade schools, which provide a formal education in skilled trades from catering to computer programming, are seeing a surge in enrollments this year. To make themselves more marketable, 26% of workers plan to go back to school to obtain a degree, certification or other training, according to Career Builder's Industry Trends Survey in September. "It's a great time to do it, the national unemployment rate is 6.5%, but the unemployment rate for skilled workers is only 3.1%," said Doug Arms, chief talent officer Ajilon Global, professional staffing firm. "There's much higher demand for skilled workers in this type of economy." Increased enrollment at technical and vocational schools is not uncommon in an economic downturn, according to Arms. "Not only in this cycle but in past cycles our enrollments throughout our campuses are very tightly correlated with the unemployment rate," said Eugene Putnam, CFO of the Universal Technical Institute.

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[Source: Financial news of the day - CNNMoney.com]