Should You Move To A Recession Proof Job Sector?

Recently I just read this list of “recession-proof” jobs on CNN. They list the following sectors as still growing in the current economy:

1. Education
2. Energy
3. Environmental sector
4. Health care
5. Security

Looking at this, it seems that my family has the bases covered. I am in a software security firm, my mom is in education, and my dad is in the non-profit environmental sector. We all switched jobs in the last two years to our current positions and I don’t think it’s a coincidence.

I used to work for a company that focused on retail shopping and mortgage leads. Last year everyone’s bonuses were cut drastically because of the mortgage fall out and I sort of knew that it was going to get worse. So I looked for a new job, and I specifically looked for companies that I thought wouldn’t be affected by real estate very much and ended up in this software security firm last November. I think it has been a good move because this company is doing well despite the current economic atmosphere.

My mom used to be in commercial real estate, and all of the properties managed by her company were sold by the owners and her management company basically shut down completely. She was given an extremely generous severance package and after looking for a couple months she landed a lower paying job in a university this January. She complains about the bureaucracy sometimes, but she seems to be adjusting to her new job.

My dad has always worked in non-profits, and decided to take a new job after working at the same place for almost 10 years. He seems to be very enamored with his new organization’s goal of combating global warming around the world, and I think that’s pretty awesome.

The fact that we have jobs in these sectors now shows that these types of companies are still hiring in a downturn. I think if you are working in an industry that is suffering the effects of the economy now you could still move into the better sectors as long as your skills are fairly transferable. You do not have to wait for a layoff to start looking because the job seekers who have a job already usually have better bargaining power and have a better chance at landing a new job. As long as you have a job throughout a recession life should go on normally, and it doesn’t hurt to be prepared for a recession by moving into a growing sector.

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