Jobs in Atlanta are on the decline, and will continue that trend for the remainder of this year.

The Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta area had a non-farm employment of 2,440,400 people in July 2008, according to the United States Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics, a .2 percent decrease from last year.

The national and local economy will continue to slow through the rest of 2008, according to an interview by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution with Rajeev Dhawan, director of the Georgia State Economic Forecasting Center. Job losses in Atlanta and Georgia will continue in the midst of high energy prices and a credit crisis.

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Many jobs in Rhode Island are expected to grow faster than the state average throughout the next few years.

By 2014, Rhode Island is expected to employ 573,437 people, an increase of 55,292 jobs, or 10.7 percent, from 2004. According to an article by the Rhode Island Department of Labor & Training, employment is projected to grow at all education and skill levels, including jobs that require only on-the-job training and those that require advanced degrees.

“During the projection period, it is estimated that employers will need to find workers to fill over 186,000 job openings,” the article notes. “Job openings result from the need to replace workers who leave an occupation and from the need to fill vacancies created by business expansion. Nearly one-third of the projected job openings is attributed to the economic growth that is expected to occur during the projection period. The remaining job openings are due to replacement needs resulting from employee turnover.”

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Everybody knows background checks are becoming a must for most employers, and the scope of today’s checks can take a lot of time and turn up a lot of information.

There are several advantages and disadvantages of background checks to both employers and employees, according to an article by CvTips.

For employers, background checks easily uncover lies on an employee’s resume or cover letter and accompany interviews, in turn helping the job selection process and ensuring employment of only honest and legitimate candidates with no criminal history. Completing a thorough background check also often protects and employer against possible future lawsuits or negligent hiring claims.

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The information industry is on the rise in many parts of the country and is creating many Connecticut jobs.

There are about 35,036 information-related jobs in Connecticut, according to an article by the Connecticut Department of Labor. The average annual wage for a worker in this industry is $80,576 per year.

The top five sectors, which make up 62.4 percent of the industry, include: computer systems design services, custom computer programming services, data processing and related services, computer facilities management services and computer and software stores.

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One program aimed at helping youths find summer jobs in Washington D.C. recently cut thousands of positions, and is now being targeted as a massive failure in the city’s payroll system.

Washington D.C. officials recently cut more than 3,200 jobs from the city’s Summer Youth Employment Program, which is expected to save the city about $1.86 million. The people effected by the cuts were either ineligible or absent from their jobs.

The program is for youths ages 14 to 21, and officials reported at least five people on the payroll were older than 50, while others were younger than 14 and some people were being paid twice. These glitches have put the program $31 million in debt.

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While unemployment in the area has slightly increased, many Seattle jobs have been added to the city’s workforce.

In June, the Seattle area added 8,000 jobs, according to an article by the Washington State Employment Security Department, with the goods producing sector adding 2,300 jobs and the services providing sector adding 5,700 jobs. The leisure and hospitality industry showed the largest increase adding 2,600 jobs, followed by the government industry, which added 1,500 jobs in June.

The construction industry added 800 jobs, falling short of seasonal expectations. The manufacturing industry added 1,500 jobs, while the aerospace products and parts manufacturing industry added 600 jobs.

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The economy doesn’t look hopeful for those seeking Michigan jobs.

Michigan’s unemployment rate stayed at 8.5 percent in July, according to the Michigan Department of Labor & Economic Growth. The state’s total employment decreased by 29,000 jobs, while unemployment decreased by 4,000 jobs, meaning the state’s labor force decreased by 33,000 over the month. In July 2007, Michigan had an unemployment rate of 7.1 percent.

According to the State of Michigan, the state’s average annual unemployment rate in 2007 was 7.2 percent, while the average unemployment rate for the first seven months of 2008 was 7.7 percent. While total employment in Michigan has declined every month since the beginning of the year, the workforce has seen a loss of 59,000 jobs, or 1.2 percent.

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While the rest of the country is suffering from high fuel prices and the rising cost of other commodities, Houston jobs and the city’s economy as a whole are on the rise.

The City of Houston employed a total of 2,619,300 people in June 2008, a 2.1 percent increase from last year, according to the United States Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics. A Detroit News article notes employment in the city has grown 2.8 percent since last year, the highest among the nation’s 39-largest metropolitan areas, and more than nine times the national average.

“In nearby Texas City, dozens of contractors’ trailers are lined up outside the gates of massive oil refineries and petrochemical plants, evidence of the billions of dollars in upgrades going on inside,” the article states. “Machine shops have more work than they can handle. And students from the local community college are being snapped up for $30-an-hour plant operator jobs, sometimes before they complete their two-year training programs, part of an intensifying scramble for qualified workers.”

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Background checks have become commonplace for many employees, particularly those who are put into a position of trust, such as certain transportation workers.

In July 2008, the U.S. Transportation Security Administration passed a rule stating all mass transit system and passenger and freight rail line employers must understand and disclose security background check regulations for employees.

According to an article by Occupational Health & Safety, the new rule was introduced without prior notice or a comment period because it adopts portions of the 9/11 Commission Act of 2007.

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The outlook for Atlanta healthcare jobs looks bright.

According to the United States Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics, the Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta area’s healthcare and education industries employed 258,600 people in June 2008, an increase of 3.7 percent from last year.

An article by the Georgia LaborMarket Explorer notes ambulatory healthcare services is projected to add 13,930 jobs by 2014, while nursing and residential care facilities are expected to grow by 7.7 percent and ambulatory healthcare services by 6 percent.

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