The US economy is off to a good start in 2021, with GDP growing at an annualized rate of 6.4% during the first three months of the year. With a majority of American consumers feeling confident about economic conditions in the United States and starting to spend the $4.1 trillion they saved during the pandemic lockdowns, the US economy is expected to enjoy its best year of growth since 1951, according to some analysts. The US economy is forecast to grow at an incredible annualized rate of 13% during the second quarter of 2021 (April, May and June) and have an overall GDP growth rate of around 7.5% for the year. Americans were purchasing cars and other goods in the first three months of the year, but strong spending on services is expected to sustain healthy economic growth during 2021 and into 2022 as more people dine in restaurants and travel. The economic expansion during the first three months of 2021 was boosted by the $600 and $1400 stimulus checks that most Americans received from the US Government. Consumers took that extra money and bought cars, appliances, furniture and other goods. To read more, click here!

On April 2, 2021, the US Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported that 917,000 new jobs in the USA were added to the economy during March 2021, dropping the country’s unemployment rate down to 6 percent. The BLS also increased its US jobs estimates for the previous two months, reporting that 233,000 people found work in America during January and 468,000 US jobs were filled in February. The hospitality and leisure sector created 280,000 jobs in the USA during March; restaurants and bars hired 176,000 employees; and the construction industry added 110,000 workers. Approximately three million people living in the US are being vaccinated each day and this is allowing more sectors of the economy to re-open, making it necessary for employers to hire thousands of workers to meet the growing demand. The world’s largest economy is expected to get a big boost this year from the $1.9 trillion stimulus package recently passed by Congress and signed into law by President Biden. The massive infrastructure program which President Biden has separately proposed to Congress will also produce thousands of new jobs in America. To read more, click here!

In March 2021, Goldman Sachs predicted that there will be strong hiring in the United States during 2021 and that the unemployment rate in the US is likely to drop from the current 6.2% to just 4.1% or even lower by the end of the year. Both Goldman Sachs and US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen also expect that US employment will return to pre-pandemic levels before 2022 comes to an end. Some of the reasons given for this optimistic US employment forecast include the ongoing reopening of the US economy, increased savings accumulated by Americans during the lockdowns, a strong desire by consumers to spend, along with the enormous fiscal stimulus recently passed by Congress. According to the Conference Board’s Labor Markets Institute, the present trend indicates that the US unemployment rate will fall “well below” 5% by the close of this year. To read more, click here!

President Joe Biden’s appointments of women to top economic policy positions in the US government has broken barriers and further demonstrated the inclusiveness promoted by the new administration. History was already made when the former US Senator from California, Kamala Harris, became the first women, first Black and first Asian Vice-President of the United States. Vice-President Harris is also the daughter of immigrants, her mother immigrating to the US from India and her father from Jamaica. President Biden’s Cabinet is also four times more diverse than former President Trump’s Cabinet. In order to help the world’s largest economy expand faster and create more jobs in America, President Biden appointed several accomplished women to senior economic policy positions in the US government. This is yet another indicator of President Biden’s support for inclusiveness in America, since women have not been represented in economics as mush as men. For example, Janet Yellen is the first women in 232 years to become Secretary of the Treasury. The White House Council of Economic Advisers is being led by Cecilia Rouse, who is the first Black leader of The Council in the 75 years it has existed. The new Chief Economist at the US Department of Labor is Janelle Jones, the first Black women to hold this high position. Joelle Gamble is the Special Assistant to The President for Economic Policy. These and other highly qualified women who are now formulating US economic policy are known for seeking an economy that benefits more Americans, including women, Blacks, Hispanics and the working class generally. They will be helping to decide how the US government spends trillions of dollars that have been approved as part of the America Rescue Plan. To read more, click here!

There are over one million advertisements posted for information technology jobs in the USA, but not enough workers to fill them all. Despite the economic disruptions cause by Covid-19 pandemic lockdowns, the unemployment rate for computer professionals in the United States was a very low 2.3% as of February 2021, which is actually lower than than in January 2020 (3.0 percent) before the start of the pandemic. During the time period of February 8, 2021, to March 7, 2021, there were 378,197 US job postings for software developers or software quality assurance analysts and testers; 101,737 US job vacancies for computer systems analysts; 101,153 advertisements for network and computer system administrators; 67,995 information security analysts needed; job openings for 61,621 computer and information systems managers; 37,058 US job ads for electrical engineers; 26,241 roles available for computer programmers; and 21,767 computer and information research scientist jobs in the USA advertised; plus thousands of other US job opportunities available in the IT sector. Unfortunately, there are not enough H-1B temporary US work visas issued each year to bring in a sufficient number of skilled foreign workers to help fill all of these US job openings in various computer occupations. Another way for skilled foreign workers and their families to work in the USA legally is to be granted a US Permanent Resident Green Card through the Green Card Lottery Program. To read more, click here!

New research from the National Immigration Forum supports President Biden’s efforts to increase US immigration levels. Some of the reasons given for boosting US immigration levels include a rapidly-aging American population; growing numbers of “baby boomer” generation workers retiring from the labor force; rising life expectancy; falling fertility rates; and shortages of workers for US jobs in information technology, healthcare, agriculture and other industries. According to the report, “Immigrants are well-positioned to fill critical shortages, whether in the labor market or the country’s demographic composition.” Recent research from the National Foundation for American Policy (NFAP) also supports raising US immigration levels, because of the positive impact immigrants have on the economy and the creation of new jobs in America. An economics professor in Florida, who was previously an economist at the Federal Reserve in Atlanta, has stated that US immigration is strongly associated with growing employment in the United States in metro and rural counties. Immigrants are especially beneficial to rural areas of the US where the population has been declining as more residents move to the cities. Immigrants can help rural populations to grow or stabilize and they fill jobs that allow local businesses to expand. To read more, click here!

The new President of the United States, Joseph Biden, has taken several measures in support of US immigration during his first days and weeks in The White House. On his first day in office, President Biden signed an Executive Order that cancelled former President Trump’s travel ban for individuals from several mostly-Muslim majority countries. The new US president also signed an Executive Order on February 24, 2021, which ended former President Trump’s temporary suspension on issuing new Green Cards which he had ordered because of the economic disruptions caused by the global pandemic. Trump’s Green Card suspension was originally set to expire on December 31, 2020, but the former president extended it until March 31, 2021. When President Biden ended the Green Card suspension, he said that Trump’s policy restricting US immigration did not serve the interests of the United States and that American businesses need talent from around the world. Another indicator of President Biden’s support for US immigration is his proposal contained in the new Immigration Reform Bill he sent to Congress to increase the number of Diversity Visas and Green Cards authorized to be issued each year from 55,000 to 80,000. The Immigration Reform Bill will, of course, have to be passed into law before the proposed increase in Diversity Visas can occur. Now that the Democrats, who tend to be more supportive of immigration and immigrants, control both houses of Congress and The White House, there is a good chance that positive US immigration reform can take place in the near future. To read more, click here!

When an immigrant becomes a Permanent Resident of the United States through the US Green Card Lottery, one of the many benefits they enjoy is the opportunity to open their own business in America. Although many entrepreneurs start a new business completely from scratch, another way to become a business owner in the USA is to purchase a franchise business. An advantage of buying a franchise business, rather than starting a business on your own from scratch, is that a franchise business is already established and has a track record for its performance which can be reviewed. Other advantages of franchises are that they often come with support from the corporate office, they have brand name recognition, and much of the marketing is done (and paid for) by the corporate headquarters. If you are interested in purchasing a franchise business after you immigrate to the US, then you may want to read Entrepreneur magazine’s ranking of 500 top franchise businesses, which it published on January 19, 2021. In their 2021 ranking, you can read a summary about each franchise; find out how much it costs to purchase the franchise; learn about potential financing options; read about training and support; and other useful information. To read more about the top 500 franchise business opportunities in the US, click here!

The New Year of 2021 is here and with it comes new opportunities for US employment and a higher standard of living in America following the challenges of the previous year. Joseph Biden will become the new president of the United States on January 20, 2021, and he is expected to promote a more positive message and agenda for America, including favorable US immigration policies. More people are working in the USA as the world’s largest economy continues to bounce back from the disruptions caused by the global pandemic. Millions of people living in America are being vaccinated against the novel coronavirus and there is hope for a much better year and future. Whether you are living in the USA and want to start a new career or you are preparing for immigration to the United States and want to find work in America, there is a brand new report that you won’t want to miss. On January 11, 2021, US News & World Report published its ranking of the best jobs in America for 2021. This extensive report has a lot a useful information about various types of jobs in the USA, including details about the occupation, its median yearly salary, the educational requirements, and how to find US employment in that career. Furthermore, for each of the top occupations listed, there is a section where you can view and apply for current US job openings! Of course, you must have a legal right to work in America, such as possessing a US Green Card or a temporary work visa. According to the report, the best construction jobs in the USA and their median annual salaries include #1 construction manager ($95,260), #2 plumber ($55,160, and #3 electrician ($56,180) among others. The top engineering jobs in America and their median yearly salaries include #1 mechanical engineer ($88,430), #2 cartographer ($65,470), and #3 petroleum engineer ($137,720) to name a few. The best US jobs in sales and marketing along with their median salaries per year are #1 marketing manager ($136,850), #2 insurance sales agent ($50,940), and #3 sales manager ($126,640) and more. The leading careers in the USA for the technology sector and their yearly salaries include #1 software developer ($107,510), #2 data scientist ($94,280), and #3 IT manager ($146,360) as well as other US jobs in this key sector. To read about more top jobs in the USA, click here!

American employers are looking for workers who possess not only ‘hard skills’ such as experience using computers or operating machines, but they also seek employees with certain ‘soft skills’ that contribute to success in any career field. Three of the best soft skills to have are problem-solving abilities, integrity and kindness, as well as “going the extra mile” by achieving more than what is expected of you. If you don’t possess one or more of these US job skills, the good news is that they can be developed over time. Problem-solving skills require an individual to be self-sufficient, and yet, know when it’s time to ask for help. Being able to compromise and manage conflict effectively are also crucial in problem-solving. Everyone desires and deserves respect in the workplace, whether they are fellow employees, customers or vendors. Having integrity and showing kindness to others are crucial for social relationships both inside and outside of the workplace. Employees who learn fast and do more than what is expected (“going the extra mile”) will soon be noticed and are more likely to advance in their career than a worker who only does the minimum. To read more, click here!