cyber jobs

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Message from the Director of IDES Not a day goes by that does not include a news story or radio show that mentions the strength of the national or state economy. There are stories about fewer people seeking unemployment insurance compared to last year. Or stories that explain why there can be job growth and an increase in the unemployment rate at the same time. The headlines and sound bites drive the conversation at the local diners and coffee shops, just as they did 20, 30 and 40 years ago. Today, the debates might be a little more intense, and the positions a little more hardened, than they were before 24-hour news programs and newspapers offering breaking news alerts on smart phones. But what has not changed is that each conversation is driven by a singular news event. With each new day there is a new headline and a new conversation, and the events of yesterday are left where they ended, rarely to be part of today’s discussion. And that is the challenge. The economy is not a simple drop of paint to be viewed through the lens of any single day. It is a mosaic that must be examined over time so context can be applied to its colors. There is no doubt that the unemployment rate is unacceptably high. And it’s a little curious that the rate has ticked upward in each of the past three summers, only to edge downward again. That pattern invites more study. There also is no doubt Illinois has added more than 220,000 private sector jobs since January 2010, the date economists agree the recovery technically began. Nor is there doubt that people are earning more today than they did before the Great Recession. The average annual wage in 2007 was $45,960. In 2012 it was $51,917. Weekly wages are up, too. The average weekly wage in 2007 was $883.86. Last year, it was $998.40. In August, there were 197,000 help wanted ads posted online. Some of the jobs are routinely found on help wanted surveys, such as truck drivers and nurses, in good times and in bad. But other positions, such as marketing managers, accountants and administrative assistants, are bright spots because they are positions that went away during the recession. There also are more than 120,000 help-wanted ads onillinoisjoblink.com, the state's employment website operated by IDES that links job seekers with employers. Keyword matching technology increases the likelihood of a successful new hire and compares favorably to private efforts that cost hundreds of dollars to purchase a single help-wanted ad. Yes, there is more to do. But news that our economy is healing should be part of the conversation that happens every day. Jay Rowell, Director Illinois Department of Employment Security             Find success. Find that new career. Go to illinoisjoblink.com today.           Follow us on Facebook           Follow us on Twitter	Recession-Proof Jobs Like Computers? Cyber Championship Leads to Jobs Cybersecurity jobs are in high demand. People with computer skills can be trained to protect computer systems or poke other computers to find weaknesses. The demand is so high, Illinois and the Cyber Aces Foundation is hosting a contest to identify workers who have cybersecurity skills. The contest is free and some competitors are expected to receive job offers before the championship has finished. Veterans make excellent cybersecurity candidates. So do community college students and career changers. Here's how the free, virtual competition works: The competition focuses on three critical modules: computer networking, operating systems and system administration. Anyone can compete. Contestants go to www.cyberaces.org to register, complete a tutorial and practice between now and the quiz, which will be held on Oct. 15. The competition, also virtual, is at the same website and must be completed Oct. 15 or Oct. 16. "Cyber Aces is thrilled to continue our partnership with Governor Quinn to help Illinois provide its citizens with the opportunity to gain the skills needed to fill critical jobs in online security," said Alan Paller, founder of Cyber Aces. The Cyber Aces Foundation is a not-for-profit organization working to discover talent and provide a pathway to employment in critical cybersecurity jobs. The foundation challenges students, Veterans and jobseekers with training and competition, develops their abilities with cybersecurity education and prepares them for cybersecurity careers. It is a 501(c)(3) organization. For more information, visit cyberaces.org. Did You Know... ...That the American Legion awarded the Ottawa, Illinois, IDES office for offering the best employment services for Veterans in the entire country? The Employment Service award was presented in August during the American Legion's 95th national convention in Houston, Texas. It was the first time Illinois has won a national award from the American Legion. Only one national winner is chosen each year. IDES is charged with delivering re-employment services to Veterans. In 2012, IDES helped 17,000 Veterans return to work. Worker Rights Protecting Workers and Taxpayers A new law designed to protect workers and taxpayers from businesses that cheat on their payroll taxes and rob the state of money used to pay unemployment insurance benefits has led to a $33 million increase in tax collections. It's called personal liability legislation. IDES now has the ability to hold personally liable the owners of businesses who knowingly cheat their payroll taxes. The shift from penalizing a business to personal liability led to the increased compliance and is part of Gov. Pat Quinn's agenda to protect workers and make Illinois a top state for business. The issue pinches every taxpayer and worker. Not paying the payroll tax, which also funds other worker protection programs such as worker's comp, hurts the Illinois economy. Catching employers who misclassify workers also increased so far this year. Twenty-nine employers who previously did not pay unemployment insurance have paid $14.9 million and 21 employers committed to paying $18.7 million. The dollars reflect a 30 percent increase in collections since the law began in 2012. Additionally, IDES so far this year identified 1,300 businesses that misclassified nearly 9,000 workers to avoid paying taxes on $2.3 million in wages. Misclassified workers often are denied protections such as minimum wage, overtime pay, and family and medical leave. Misclassifying workers artificially lowers a business' cost because employers do not pay worker compensation or unemployment insurance for those individuals. Hiding these costs allows businesses to underbid competitors by 30 percent and robs state coffers of other taxes, increasing the financial burden on residents and contributing to the state's financial pressures. Generally, to be considered an independent contractor, a worker must be free from direction or control. A worker is not an independent contractor just because an employer designates him or her as such – even if the worker agrees to the designation. Employers breaking the law could face fines of at least $10,000 and up to 24 percent interest on failed payments. Helping Veterans Feds Choose IDES to Help Veterans Federal officials chose to fund IDES' innovative social media program to help young Veterans returning from active duty more quickly transition to civilian life and find a job. The Army UCX, the program emphasizes social media to connect Veterans with IDES' employment services and the state's help-wanted job board,Illinoisjoblink.com. Recently discharged Veterans qualify for unemployment insurance and the federally designated UCX acronym indicates Unemployment Compensation Ex-Military. The Army UCX program guides Veterans to IDES' door so a personalized service plan can be built to meet each individual's specific needs as well as the needs of their family.  The pilot program could become a best-practices model to be used nationwide. Illinois' $700,000, two-year program will test the emerging theory that using social media to more quickly and frequently engage Veterans will lead to shorter readjustment times and fewer weeks collecting unemployment insurance. Central to this theory is that these young Veterans do not readily embrace the fraternal organizations of prior military generations, such as the posts affiliated with the American Legion or Veterans of Foreign Wars. While young Veterans are not inclined to use fraternal services, they are likely to engage in social media platforms because they did so prior to deployment. Veterans can access personalized UCX service throughIllinoisjoblink.com. The state's hiring board features more than 120,000 help-wanted ads. Job seekers can build multiple resumes to emphasize different skills and experiences. Business owners can use keyword matching technology to search resumes and find the best candidate, including a specification for Veterans. Illinoisjoblink.com is free for workers and employers. It compares favorably to private efforts that cost hundreds of dollars. No-cost HR recruitment services are available at the website and at (877) 342-7533. Illinois was chosen because it was among the first states to propose a comprehensive outreach strategy built around social media. Although social media channels have been key components of private-sector campaigns, the tool remains relatively new to the military.
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