Job Market Good And Bad p.27

By: Editorial Staff DEMAND FOR WRITERS and editors is looking strong, but for reporters and editors the news is mixed, according to two reports.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics job outlook, which shows prospects for 250 occupations through the year 2005, projects job growth for writers and editors outpacing the market for, for example, funeral directors, by a 2-to-1 margin ? which puts wordsmiths in a job market as healthy as the one for taxi drivers.
Projections call for 59,000 new writing and editing jobs ? a 22% gain from 272,000 in 1994 ? in the 10-year period, as demand grows for workers in book, periodical and technical publishing, plus advertising and public relations, government forecasters project.
The market for reporters and correspondents, on the other hand, is expected to shrink by 2,200 jobs ? 4% below the total of 59,000 in 1994 ? during the period as a result of newspaper industry consolidation and soft advertising and circulation. Best opportunities: small-town papers and specialized reporting.
Meanwhile, at E&P, classified revenue jumped more than 20% last year ? indicating a strong market for newsroom staffers. The classified pages are dominated by the help-wanted category, which in turn is dominated by newsroom jobs, followed by ad positions.
The help wanted boom help set an E&P record for one issue in February: 17 classified pages, in a section that was running nine or 10 pages a week before growing to 11 or 12 pages last year.
Newspaper industry hiring is being fueled by a strong national economy and job growth in new media, E&P ad executives said, plus a restaffing after newsprint price increases forced newspapers to cut staffing in the early 1990s.
"The newspaper industry is finally realizing the value of good employees and the need to be competitive with all other sources of news," said Mike Dardano, vice president-advertising.
"They are playing catch-up, getting back into the employment game, which they weren't into for a while."
The classified gains included a 5% rate increase in 1996 and new revenue for help wanted ads posted on the company's Web site (http://www.mediainfo.com), but they followed declines in classified revenue and linage in 1995. Advertisers may buy classifieds either in print or online versions or in a combination.
The recovery began early last year and continued strongly through the traditionally slow summer months, said classified manager Shawn Olson, and increases were holding up so far this year.
February 22, 1997 n Editor & Publisher #