>
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: owner-lbo-talk at lists.panix.com
> > [mailto:owner-lbo-talk at lists.panix.com]On Behalf Of Doug Henwood
> >For example, in a fact sheet on NAFTA, it was stated
> > that the biggest job growth was projected to be for janitors and
>a couple of
> > similar categories. When I went to the US government statistics
>on the web,
> > it was actually for computer programmers and some similar occupations.
>
>Actually, both statements can be correct (ie. how to lie with
>statistics) since
>computer programmers can be experiencing the highest PERCENTAGE
>growth in jobs,
>while janitors - starting from a larger base of existing employment - can have
>the largest ABSOLUTE growth in jobs.
I haven't yet looked at the latest set of numbers, but for the last few batches this is exactly what the BLS projections looked like: very rapid percentage growth rates for things like programmers and systems analysts, but the biggest numerical growth in things like cashiers and home health aides. Average skill demands for the labor force at a whole were highly underwhelming.
Doug