by frog
Tradestaff recruitment agency has identified the top five recession-proof jobs with high earning potential in New Zealand at the moment. You won’t be surprised to know Member of Parliament is not on the list. Instead you are recommended to become a wallpaper hanger, roading engineer, dairy farm worker/share milker, I.T engineer or plumber.
Personally I think Tradestaff may have a different, old-style recession in mind to the current peak oil fuelled one. I think this new recession might have more vacancies for bus and train builders than roading engineers and more space for horticultural farmers than industrial dairy farmers.
Tradestaff reckons that an economic downturn and technology are the threats that could make many other workers redundant. However, as we have seen from the numerous redundancies and closures this year before the recession has begun it’s just as likely to be political choices we make that cause jobs to evaporate. The 500 ANZ National jobs that are now in Bangalore rather than New Zealand undercut the myth that workers should embrace IT and service work rather than manufacturing and farming. Likewise many skilled manufacturing jobs have headed offshore because we forgot to support our diverse local economies in exchange for cheap imported and replaceable goods. Political choices that favour low carbon self sufficiency might be a good way to start recession-proofing more jobs.
Published in Economy, Work, & Welfare by frog on Thu, September 4th, 2008
Tags: employment, jobs, recession, redundancies, tradestaff
on the trolls and those who are unable to keep on topic
The only people with “recession proof” jobs are those that are not participating in the wider economy. We call them peasants and they scratch out a meagre self-sufficient living at a subsistence level and are tyically so poor that their children have to work their small plot of land with them.
And whilst they are certainly unaffected by any economic ups and downs, their fragile livelihood is at the mercy of flood, drought, disease, crop-failure etc. They are a step away from disaster at all times.
For the rest of us, the benefits of participating in a national and international economy are so staggeringly high that even the worst recession is like a modest inconvenience compared to the alternative.
Moreover, unemployment does not correlate with how open or closed an economy is to the wider world. How many millions of jobs have been created in the US over the last 20 years, even as globalisation surged? Good jobs, too. So globalisation does not create high levels of unemployment; it creates high standards of living.
But more than all the economic arguments, the main point is that nobody has the right to prevent others participating in free trade. You might not like us dealing with foreigners – many of whom are extremely poor – but you certainly should not use state violence to end our mutual cooperation.
If you want to buy stuff made in NZ then you are free to do so. Just leave others with the same freedom to choose differently with their own money.
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Dr James Lovelock on Emissions Trading Scheme
The leading British scientist says New Zealand is wasting its time passing an Emissions Trading Scheme. (duration: 4′04″)
http://www.radionz.co.nz/audio/national/mnr/2008/09/04/dr_james_lovelock_on_emissions_trading_scheme
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Sorry wrong place.
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S’funny, JMG’s latest post is on a similar topic: http://thearchdruidreport.blogspot.com/2008/09/post-petroleum-job-ads.html
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Great tip on how to recession-proof our job! I really appreciate it! but I have another tip but not how to recession-proof our job but how to recession-proof our income. Why not try to find some extra income-generating activities like become a clown? Anyone might want to learn how to be a clown and earn a living entertaining anyone especially the kids especially during birthday parties or stuff like that….
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