It’s no secret that Americans are split about their
choice for President, but the employed and unemployed are also closely divided
on which candidate they believe will have a bigger impact on U.S. employment if
elected, according
to the results of a new study of 5,604 active and passive job seekers conducted
by Beyond.com, The Career Network focused on helping people grow and succeed
professionally.
The
survey found that President Obama is favored more by respondents who are
employed, by a 7-point margin (50% to 43%), while Governor Romney leads among
the unemployed by 6 points (50% to 44%). Further:
- A full 64% believe that how the
candidates speak to the U.S. employment situation throughout their
campaigns will have a major impact on their selection for president.
- And when asked which candidate
would bring better employment prospects for them personally, Governor
Romney came out ahead by a margin of 5% (46% to 41%), with 13% believing their
job prospects will remain the same regardless of who is elected.
The
survey revealed different degrees of optimism (62%) about today’s job market, which
breaks down to 26% believing that there are good opportunities out there for
them now and 36% that say they are cautiously optimistic despite a difficult
employment environment. However, when asked about job opportunities in their
own localities, the mood turned more bullish with 73% believing “there are jobs
out there for me in my state.”
“Our
survey confirms that the hiring picture in one’s own back yard is going to be a
determinant of how people will feel when they visit the polls,” said Rich
Milgram, founder and CEO of Beyond.com. “While job seekers are hopeful,
businesses are more tentative, taking a wait- and-see approach to hiring. With
new policies potentially on the horizon, the post-election environment will have
a significant impact on the number of immediate opportunities available to the
U.S. workforce,” Milgram added.
Among
the battleground states of New Hampshire, Iowa and Colorado, Beyond.com’s
network indicates that recently the most job opportunities are to be found in the
Healthcare & Medical field; across positions such as Physical Therapists, Registered
Nurses and Medical Assistants, according to Milgram.
Bloomberg BusinessWeek recently reported that
the jobless rate rose in August in 5 of 10 states considered battlegrounds in
the U.S. presidential election. Nevertheless, joblessness in six of those 10
states is below the national average of 8.1 percent.
Additional Highlights
from the Survey
- While 17% of those surveyed said
that they expect the current employment situation to “get worse before it
gets better,” twice as many respondents (35%) report a conviction that the
current employment situation “will improve” regardless of who is elected.
- A vast majority of respondents (85%)
agree that fixing the employment system is a longer-term challenge that
would likely take “at least another year” (42.4%) or “several years”
(42.7%) to fix.
- Not surprisingly, respondents who
are presently employed were twice as likely (33.3%) as those who are
currently jobless (17.3%) to agree with the statement “as of today, I
believe my prospects for employment are good; there are opportunities out
there for me.”
- Respondents believe that the top
three industries with the largest growth opportunities after the election will
be: healthcare (cited by 35% of
respondents), manufacturing (23.4%) and technology (22%).
- Nearly half (45.6%) reported that
it was “the economy” that will have the most impact on the growth of
middle class jobs.” The number two factor with the greatest impact on
growth: small business
(23.8%). Only 17.6% viewed
“politics” as a major influence on growth.
A
total of 5,604 individuals participated in the survey from among the 10
million+ unique visitors to Beyond.com between August 23 and September 19,
2012. Membership in the career network
was not required. The margin of error
was plus or minus 1.31 percentage points. Respondents
included individuals who were “unemployed and looking for work,” “employed and
looking for work” and “browsing to keep my options open.”
