How Good is the Job News?
Last evening, I listened closely to President Obama’s speech for new ideas about jobs for Americans that would give us all hope.
I heard about clean energy jobs, something President Obama discussed during the election, but it was not clear where the jobs would be coming from, or even what jobs might be.
I also heard about ideas for small businesses getting help in the form of tax breaks and SBA loans so they could hire more people. I listened closely to this topic because of my recent difficult experience with it. I am the president of a small business, and two weeks ago I got an SBA loan to grow the business and hire more staff. BUT, it took me one year to get the SBA loan, and collateral I had to put down was disproportionately huge — four times the amount of the loan. Basically, the SBA and the small community bank could take over everything I own if anything ever happens to me or to my business. Very few small business owners have this amount of collateral to support a business loan. So, I was understandably skeptical about Obama’s ideas regarding the SBA loans as a way to create more jobs.
Needless to say, I did not come away from the speech with much positive news to share with you.
This morning I took a new approach. I decided to look past the political rhetoric and examine the actions actually being taken right now to generate more jobs for Americans. So, I read the transcript of last night’s speech to compare Obama’s NEW JOB IDEAS with the NEW AND PROPOSED BILLS that will support those ideas.
This is what I found out:
PASSED BILL (2009):
Recovery Act (passed) to create Construction Jobs
This bill has been passed last year and is in action.
BILLS PASSED RECENTLY OR WILL PASS:
New GI Bill and Military Family Bill for more Military Family / Vet Services Jobs
This bill has passed, and these jobs will begin to appear very soon.
New Education Bill to create more Education Jobs
This bill will probably pass and will create more education / teaching jobs.
BILLS IN PROGRESS:
The Jobs Bill - $154B Bill for Transportation and Instructor Training Jobs
This bill has not passed yet.
SBA Loans for Small Businesses ($30B to community banks) to create new Small Business Jobs
The Main Street Lending Restoration Act was just proposed in December 2009.
Doha Bill for more Global Exporting / Business Jobs
This problematic bill has been in the works for a long time and may not pass.
Climate and Energy Bill to create new Clean Energy Jobs
This bill has not passed yet the Senate yet.
and …
A NOTE ABOUT THE SPENDING FREEZE: For those of you who have been worried about a spending freeze, the one piece of solid good news I can give you is that the spending freeze will not start until 2011. Let’s move forward with hope that the programs will begin to have a positive impact on our jobs situation soon.
SUMMARY:
My feeling last night was right: the speech did not say much about REAL JOB CREATION TODAY. So, moving forward, I will continue with my federal job search counseling, training, book publishing and other activities as I have been doing. I will continue to encourage jobseekers to write the best possible resume and federal resume. And I’ll keep encouraging people to stay strong and focused toward the future. Don’t think or worry about what the government is doing. It’s all up to each person to figure out their way to a new job and to solve their financial issues. If the government does come up with programs that will help us, that’s GREAT! But I am not going to sit around and wait. I will continue to be the entrepreneur that I am!
Thanks for reading. Good luck with your job search.
– Kathryn Troutman
Author of several books on federal job search;
Founder and President of The Resume Place, Inc. for 35 years;
and the lucky recipient of an SBA loan!
WHAT YOU CAN DO:
Write your Senators in support of the Jobs Bill, which has already passed the House. This bill COULD make a difference for you and millions of America’s jobless.