How can you find a good job now that California is reopening? Here’s what to know

The pandemic has led many Californians, by force or choice, to hit a reset button in their career.

The state lost more than three million jobs between February and April of 2020, the peak of the pandemic. Many of those lost jobs have come back. But California’s labor market is still more than 1.3 million jobs short of where it was before the pandemic.

As California lifts most of its restrictions on June 15, labor experts and career coaches expect the state to continue to regain lost jobs.

But what will those jobs look like? Which jobs will be lost for good? Will the so-called “labor shortage” push up wages? And how can California workers take advantage of the current labor market to find better jobs?

Here’s how labor experts and career coaches are answering those questions:

Who’s hiring?

“I want to say everyone,” said Erica Johnson, a program coordinator for YoloWorks career center in Yolo County.

But some sectors are hiring more than others. Construction added nearly 20,000 jobs in California between January and April, followed by hospitality and health care industries, which each gained more than 15,000 jobs, according to the UCLA Anderson School of Management’s analysis of the state’s employment data.

The number of permits for new homes is expected to go up 40% in 2021 compared to 2020, said Jerry Nickelsburg, director of the UCLA Anderson Forecast. The trend won’t make homes affordable — California is still short millions of units — but it can help create more jobs, Nickelsburg said.

The hospitality industry, which shed hundreds of thousands of jobs during the pandemic, should regain a lot of what it lost, said Taner Osman, research manager at Beacon Economics. The healthcare industry should also recover as people resume getting medical procedures they postponed during the pandemic, Osman said.

More good news for workers: Wages are going up. Average hourly earnings for private employees in the U.S. went up by 1.2% between March and May, according to data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The the trend should continue for a while, Osman said.

Population growth is slowing, with California seeing a decline in the number of its residents in 2020 for the first time in the state’s history.

“There are some structural issues right now making the labor market tighter, continuing what we’ve seen prior to the pandemic,” Osman said. “Even if you are to take away the unemployment benefits, it doesn’t take away the fact that the population growth is slowing.”

Should I go back to work now?

It’s a tough question to answer.

California doesn’t currently require those getting unemployment insurance to look for work each week, although other states such as Hawaii and Washington have brought back the obligation.

COVID-19 is still around. Some workers may still have a hard time finding childcare.

Some may want to wait for a job with higher pay, or use the time to train for a new job while they get unemployment benefits. California allows workers going through a training program to continue receiving unemployment benefits even if they may not be eligible otherwise, through a program known as California Training Benefits.

But now may be the time to go back to work, as the state’s tight labor market pushes employers to be more flexible in hiring those with less experience or skills, said Dan Cordero, senior vice president of a staffing agency Randstad USA which has more than 60 branches in California.

“People in an organization who are adding value, taking on more responsibility, showing leadership, taking on additional duties – those... will be promoted,” Cordero said. “Sitting on a sideline won’t help a person get to that next level, unless they’re out there working as an employee somewhere.”

I want a new job. How can I get started?

California has nearly 200 job centers that can help workers find jobs. Find the nearest location at careeronestop.org

Those job centers have staff who can assess workers’ skills and interests. Workers can get connected to jobs and training opportunities, said Roy Kim, deputy director of workforce development at the Sacramento Employment and Training Agency.

You can connect with those job centers virtually. Sacramento County, for instance, has online orientation every Tuesday to help workers navigate the center’s resources. Yolo County has a virtual career fair scheduled for June 30, Johnson said.

“If they’re just looking for help wanted ads, they’re going to miss out on a lot of jobs,” Kim said. “If you’re not taking advantage of it, it’s really a missed opportunity.”

Other websites can help. The state of California has caljobs.ca.gov, which lists job openings in the public and private sectors. More than 800,000 jobs are available on onwardca.org, which launched last year to help laid-off workers find jobs and services, said Jake Soberal, co-founder and CEO of Bitwise, which created the website.

What kind of job training is available?

Community colleges and adult schools can be a very affordable way to get the training workers need, said Jeffrey Wallace, president and CEO of LeadersUp, which works to connect young workers and businesses. Workers can visit careered.cccco.edu to learn more about what kind of programs are available at California’s community colleges.

Apprenticeships are also a good way for workers to get the skills they need while earning wages, Wallace said.

In Northern California, consulting company Accenture is working with an insurance company Aon to create 1,000 apprenticeships in Northern California by 2025, said Matt Miller, vice president of research and strategy for the Greater Sacramento Economic Council. Those apprentices will spend a year training on the job and get hired for full-time positions at a rate of about 80%, said Mark Noreiga, Sacramento office managing director for Accenture.

With Gov. Gavin Newsom setting a goal of having 500,000 active apprentices by 2029, California has been ramping up its effort to create more opportunities. The list of programs is available at dir.ca.gov/databases/das/aigstart.asp.

There are also online training programs. YoloWorks, for instance, offers Metrix Learning for free, where workers can get certificates in skills such as accounting software QuickBooks, Johnson said. Workers can also get digital certificates through Google at grow.google.

Bitwise has free training available online for programming skills such as Javascript and HTML, Soberal said. “We exist for an individual who has been excluded from the opportunities in the technology sector.”

How can I make myself a better candidate for a job?

Here are some tips from Johnson:

• Polish your resume and cover letter: If you’re moving to a different industry, it’s a good idea to have someone in or familiar with the sector review your materials.

• Research the company you’re applying to: Your resume and cover letter should be aligned with what the company is looking for in a position. Johnson also said you can reach out to employers to better understand their culture and what they’re looking for.

And here are more tips from Cordero:

• Be honest about your skills. “Hiring managers really appreciate more of an honest, straightforward application than someone trying to make it more robust than it is,” he said.

• If you’re flexible on areas such as remote working, let your hiring managers know.

• Talk with people, in and out of your network. “You’ll be surprised how many hiring managers, employees of organizations, are willing to reach out to applicants and talk to them about their organizations,” he said.

• Don’t let the job requirements deter you, within reason. Employers are more flexible, especially now, he said.

Finally, Wallace advises practicing your “elevator pitch” as well as interviews, especially those done virtually.