Census jobs boost economy
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For Mike Jones of South Fayette the 2010 Census has been more than a decennial ritual conducted by the federal government. It has been a much-needed break from a spell of unemployment.
Mr. Jones, 27, was let go from his job as municipal and state government reporter for the Washington Observer-Reporter a year ago. He began working in March, and still works, with the Beaver Falls office of the Census Bureau as a group quarters enumerator, tallying residents of hospitals, group homes and the like.
In so doing, he joined an army of temporary workers that signed on with the bureau in a hiring blitz that added 48,000 jobs to the nation's economy in March, 66,000 in April and 411,000 in May -- more than 95 percent of all jobs added that month, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Now those jobs have begun to disappear.
The agency's staffing peaked during the week of May 2, when its temporary payroll reached 585,729. By the week of June 6, the last pay period for which information is available, that number had dropped to 330,737.
What happens with those workers when their jobs disappear will depend in part on what they were doing before signing on for the census.
"I know we had college students. I know we had retirees," said local Census Bureau spokeswoman Pam Golden. "We were all over the map."
But she could not give a breakdown of the local work force because the bureau does not track the demographics of its employees.
In the absence of data about where census workers have come from, no one knows how many of them, like Mr. Jones, may rejoin the ranks of the unemployed in coming weeks.
Mr. Jones has continued to draw reduced levels of unemployment compensation while doing census work, but anticipates those payments also will end in the next month or so. So he plans to step up his job-hunting efforts by signing up with a temporary agency or an executive search firm.
He has begun to consider relocating, though he bought a home only 21/2 years ago.
"Now that I've passed the one-year mark [since leaving his last job], looking in other areas is definitely becoming a strong possibility now," he said.
The Census Bureau's temporary jobs have paid more than many workers' permanent jobs, with hourly wages ranging from $11.25 for clerks to $18.75 for field operations supervisors.
But Mr. Jones said the money has not been the most important part of working with the bureau.
"You have a daily schedule, and it adds structure to your day. I think that's important when you're looking for work," he said.
"More than money, it's getting a daily job and a daily routine that I think that's most important. At least that's what's most beneficial for me."
First Published June 29, 2010 12:00 am
