Unemployment in the USA, at the time of writing, is at its lowest level for a generation. Between 1993 and 1996, employment in all sectors except farming grew by between 8% and 15.7%. The effect of this is seen most clearly in the construction and manufacturing sectors, with companies across the country offering incentives to workers such as health care schemes, free building lots for homes, property tax breaks, and bonuses in order to tempt them away from rivals. In some cases factories are opening up new plants in order to tap into new labor pools, and are offering workers up to $8 an hour, against the average starting wage of $6.

Recent figures show that the fastest growing sectors in the economy are in high-technology areas such as semiconductors (12% growth), medical instrumentation such as X-ray apparatus, surgical and medical instruments, surgical appliances (8.5% growth), computers and electronics equipment. The US Department of Labor reports that the fastest-growing occupations are in the law (particularly paralegals, or legal executives), medicine (medical assistants, radiologists, medical record technicians, physiotherapists and occupational therapists, and surgical technologists), financial services (mainly securities and financial sales reps), and the computer industry (mainly programmers).

These figures of course apply to the domestic jobs market. The outlook for expatriates is not as optimistic as it was in the boom years at the end of the 1980s and the beginning of the 90s, when recruitment agencies in Europe were sending out hundreds of highly-qualified executives and technicians a year. But the USA continues to be a favored overseas posting for company employees: in a recent survey of 60 major employers of expatriates the London-based consultants Employment Conditions Abroad found that increasing numbers of foreign workers are now being posted to the USA. It is the largest area for expat movements both in terms of numbers, and the size of the country, and they anticipate that the trend will continue. This however applies only to those already employed by large companies with headquarters, subsidiaries, branches or agencies in the USA.

Prospects for foreigners are best in high technology fields and niche markets. Highly-qualified engineers and managers in the computer industry, and in some areas of medicine such as physiotherapy and occupational therapy, are still in demand. Software designers and systems engineers with five to ten years experience will find a ready market for their skills in the USA.

Although the outlook in some areas is not optimistic, foreign workers will always be popular. It is often cheaper to employ expatriates: recruitment costs may be higher, but there is little danger of the employee being poached by rivals. There will be no training costs, and there is more of a loyalty guarantee if a foreigner comes over expressly to work for your company.