According to a new report from the Alabama Department of Labor (ADOL), truck drivers and registered nurses continue to be the most sought-after employees in the state. ADOL made its determination by examining Help Wanted Online Data (HWOL), for which those two professions had more than 5,000 combined job listings.
Both registered nurses and truck drivers are receiving an average wage of well over $20 per hour in the Yellowhammer State. In fact, six of the ten most in-demand jobs in Alabama are offering an average wage over $20 per hour.
The department gathered its data from all online job postings in the state, including those posted on the state’s free online jobs database, joblink.alabama.gov. It also looked at online traditional job boards, corporate boards, and social media sites.
According to the department, job demand was highest in the state’s largest cities, with Birmingham, Huntsville, and
Montgomery at the top of the list. The report also noted that the top three employers posting ads were Pizza Hut (1,106), UAB Medicine (677), and St.Vincent’s Health System (676).
Job demand in Alabama measured by online listings is higher than the national mean by about 2 percentage points. This has been the case since at least June of 2013, but the gap has widened in recent months.
The June unemployment rate in Alabama is 6 percent, unchanged from May’s revised rate of 6 percent, and below June 2015’s rate of 6.1 percent, but with demand for high-wage jobs this high, that rate could soon begin to go down.
In recent years, Alabama leaders have enacted numerous programs aimed at cutting the unemployment rate, including the creation of job centers.
Alabama Career Centers are a product of the Department of Labor. The DOL also runs a website, Alabama Job Link, where individuals looking for work can find listings a get access to job programs.
“We’d like to encourage anyone who needs a job, or wants a different job, to come into one of our Career Centers for assistance,” said Fitzgerald Washington, Commissioner of the Alabama Department of Labor. “Our trained staff can assist you in obtaining the career you want.”
