Region insulated from worst of unemployment crisis

March 4, 2009 - 8:31am

AP: b9339a70-c6cc-4dd5-80f8-de25efc0abff

Job fairs, like this one in New York, are drawing huge crowds. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

WASHINGTON -- As the nation undergoes the worst unemployment crisis in a generation, people are finding work in the D.C. region thanks in part to health care and the federal government.

"We're still the best place to weather the storm," Stephen Fuller, director for the Center for Regional Analysis at George Mason University in Fairfax, Va., tells WTOP.

"We're still adding jobs. Unemployment remains relative, but things aren't as good as they were a year or two ago."

Those in health care are finding little competition for positions since you can't get a nursing or physical therapy degree overnight. The same goes for other health care positions.

With the federal government right here, some key agencies -- National Security Agency, Defense Intelligence Agency and Central Intelligence Agency -- are actively recruiting.

The recruiting comes after the area added 5,000 federal jobs last year. Fuller, an expert on the local economy, says last year was the first time the area had seen an increase in federal jobs in more than 10 years. Many of those positions are in agencies that are dealing with the economic crisis, he says.

But government agencies aren't the only ones hiring. Government contractors have positions open. The federal military base realignment plan will mean jobs for those in construction as well as the janitorial industry.

The director of recruitment for Northrop Grumman's Reston-based Information Systems division tells The Washington Post the company will hire 4,000 employees locally. Most are in software development and network security.

Fuller says the federal contractor jobs are offsetting losses in retail and construction.

"There is a rebalancing of the economy that is good for us."

Fuller says this rebalancing will ultimately prompt a need for more housing. He anticipates new housing construction in the region will restart in April, provided developers can get construction loans and buyers mortgages.