It doesn't take a calculator, or even a slide rule (for those of a certain age), to figure out that times are tough for engineers these days. Start-ups are stopping, once-hot high-tech fields are cooling off, and big companies are aggressively getting smaller. The result is a wave of joblessness for engineers who enjoyed non-stop boom times in the 1990s.
Thomas Gardner, a 32-year-old mechanical engineer, was laid off last November by start-up Codeon Corp., a Columbia, MD maker of optical equipment for fiber-optics telecommunications companies. Codeon had hired Mr. Gardner to help scale up manufacturing, but expected orders didn't materialize. He had been there eight months, at an annual pay of $60,000.
Indeed, unemployment among engineers has more than doubled since early 2001, according to the U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics. The jobless rate for all engineers, 1.5 percent in 2001's first quarter, reached 3.6 percent in the first quarter of 2002. Among electrical engineers, the rate rose from 1.1 percent a year ago to 4.1 percent. And the number of engineers unemployed from January to March reached 79,000, up sharply from 32,000 a year earlier. Meanwhile, the number of employed electrical engineers fell to 690,000 in the first quarter of 2002 from 748,000 in mid-2001.
Where the Jobs Are
In the construction sector, "Demand is strong," reports Jim Vockley, Executive Vice President of Kimmel & Associates, an Asheville, NC search firm. "Specialties like mechanical and electrical engineers are in very high demand," while civil and structural engineering demand is somewhat less robust. "Right now the public sector and government work seem to be lagging behind."
In geographic terms, "the Southeast is very strong," he adds, while New England is the lowest area. Kimmel's searches typically average in the $100,000-$150,000 range for upper-level managers and executives. Most of the current assignments reflect expansion rather than replacement hiring, he adds. He's currently searching for a branch manager with about 15 years' experience for a design-build firm in the Pacific Northwest for a position paying $100,000 per year.
Mr. Vockley says an attractive candidate these days might be around 50 years old, with a half dozen or so jobs on the resume, but a "solid pattern of staying long enough to have an impact on an organization." Prospective employers are interested in past results: "Are candidates profitable? What fees have they generated, or changes in staff or policy changes implemented?"
Mr. Vockley says private companies often can be more creative and flexible in fashioning compensation packages. "Large companies may be at the mercy of salary caps, but if a mid-size private owner wants somebody badly enough, he can get creative."
