USD Magazine, Spring 1993

agernent employees or engineers who were paid well, are highly educated and worked for five to 25 years at the same company. These are people who never thought they would find them– selves in this position. "We have many more people unemployed than we have jobs," Fowlkes says. "The pay for the jobs out there is much lower than what they were used to. There is a big problem find– ing people with the right skills, and there is a lot of disillusion– ment in trying to find a job. They think they should be able to find something with the same pay and benefits as they had before. Most are not going to be able to do that." Many are humiliated. Others don't know how to network, prepare a resume or cover letter. And many assembly-line workers are left without marketable skills. That's where the San Diego Consortium and Private Industry Council Career Center comes in. The center targets dislocated workers, with plans to expand its services to include economically disadvan– taged adults and in-school and out-of-school youths. Fowlkes knows firsthand what it is like to be unemployed. He was a client of the center four years ago after he was part of a massive layoff at TRW. He returned to the center last fall to help the growing number of unemployed clients get back on their feet. USD Director of Career Services Scales sees a lot of young people who don't want to leave San Diego. Unfortunately, San Diego is not (and never has been) an entry-level job market, and it is traditionally hard to get hired straight out of college here, though the Los Angeles and San Francisco markets are better. In previous years, students newly graduated from USD could afford to wait around for a summer, a semester or even a year while they tested the San Diego job market. But the eco– nomic climate has forced many parents to cut the apron strings--or, rather, purse strings-earlier, forcing many to look elsewhere. Students corning to USD from other parts of the country often must return to their hometowns to find jobs. The USD Career Center helps students decide on a major, focus their interests and look for a career. The service also is open to alumni, and about 15 percent to 20 percent of the cen– ter's traffic comes from alumni taking advantage of the self– assessment tests, brochures and employment listings, and help with resume and cover-letter writing and interviewing skills. Scales, who says about 75 percent of USD students come through her office before graduation, has seen other changes

brought on by the economy. Students who once coveted jobs at bigger, name-brand companies are beginning to realize that big– ger is not always better. Statistics indicate that vast numbers of jobs being created in the future will come from smaller indus– tries, and with smaller companies comes the tradeoff of smaller salaries. That means some graduates of the future may find themselves looking for more than one job--one job they enjoy, perhaps, and another job to supplement their income. The economy has forced some employers to change their recruitment methods, Scales says. For example, a major bank that used to recruit nationally is now recruiting exclusively in the San Diego area because qualified candidates can be found locally without the expense of a national search. Fowlkes says many laid-off assembly-line workers are being retrained as computer operators, computer repair workers, refrigerator repair workers or in the medical field. The real problem will come when these jobs are gone and the second wave of laid-off workers hits the area. "The problem isn't the clients, but where to put these peo– ple when the jobs just aren't there," he says. Although there is concern about the tarnishing of the Gold– en State's economy, most say there is something about Califor– nians that will lead the state to a comeback. Scales, a Pasadena native, calls it a "community spirit" that has been present since the first settlers came here. New Eng– land native DeRoche says it's the "energy" present in the peo– ple of California that will pull the state out of its slump. But what about the "California Dream"? Will the image of unlimited opportunity in a beautiful land of perfect weather make a comeback along with the economy? Yes, says Fowlkes, adding that Californians simply have lost sight-ternporarily--of what they need to do to keep the dream alive. "Things are going to have to change," he says. "But people will continue to dream. And if you dare to dream, you're proba– bly going to be successful." Free-lance writer Dianne Ludlam is a regular contributor to USD Magazine. She last wrote on the USD engineering pro– gram for the fall 1992 issue .

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