While overall job growth slows, health care employment surges

Healthcare employment is experiencing breakaway growth in 2019 as an aging population and rising incomes raise demand for healthcare services. That is creating new opportunities for job seekers, including those displaced by the retail apocalypse.

According to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the healthcare sector has added more than 300,000 new jobs in the first nine months of 2019, 21% more than over the same period last year. Meanwhile, the wider economy has seen job growth slow, with 37% fewer workers added to payrolls overall. Job seekers from other industries increasingly look to switch to healthcare

As a result, job seekers are flocking to healthcare from other sectors. In a recent ZipRecruiter survey, one in 10 retail workers said they were looking for jobs in the industry. People who used to work in business, education or accommodation before are also making the switch to jobs in the industry in large numbers. Investing in healthcare skills, particularly mental health skills, is likely to pay

off

The barrier to entry can be high in healthcare occupations, with many jobs requiring degrees and/or occupational licenses. But investments in those skills are likely to pay off in the long run since the industry is expected to account for the lion’s share of the new jobs projected through 2028.

Most In-Demand Healthcare Skills in the ZipRecruiter Skills Index, October 2019

1. Medicaid billing

2. Phlebotomy 3. Cardiology

4. Medical imaging

5. Mental health

6. Acute care

7. Psychology

8. Occupational therapy

9. Patient care

10. Psychiatry

In ZipRecruiter’s Skills Index, mental health skills make a prominent showing on the list of most in-demand health skills in 2019. That is no surprise, since the health sector employers who are expanding payrolls the fastest, according to the BLS, include outpatient mental health centers and the offices of psychologists and psychiatrists.

The positions they are seeking to fill include office receptionists and appointment schedulers, billing specialists, substance abuse and mental health counselors, psychologists and psychiatrists. In other words, they span the pay and education spectrum and involve a wide range of functions likely to appeal to an ever wider pool of job seekers.