Thursday, February 13, 1997

Executives who lost their jobs in downsizings getting bigger salaries in new jobs

By ELLEN FORMAN

Sun-Sentinel, South Florida

For the first time in three years, more than half of all executives who lost their jobs in downsizings are getting bigger salaries in their new positions than in the jobs they left behind.

So says outplacement agency Drake Beam Morin in its 1996 Career Transition Study.

But the jump isn't necessarily true for people of all ages. More than half of men over the age of 50 and women over 40 tended to take a pay cut when they moved on to a new job, the survey said.

Survey participants included 525 men and women who were terminated in downsizings and used outplacement services to find new jobs. "It's pretty indicative of what's going on in the market today," said Joe Bruccoleri, senior vice president of Drake Beam Morin.

People with technical experience will find themselves in demand once again, he said.

"The economy is expanding, particularly for small companies. For every 10 jobs created, we see seven of those jobs created by companies (with) under 500 employees."

But job growth is not limited to small companies, Bruccoleri said. He sees a trend defying conventional wisdom. "Corporate America was not going to hire back all those people it let go in the 1990s because of the recession. That isn't true. Hiring activities by the Fortune 1000 are expanding," he said.

Other survey findings: Men between 56 and 60 and women between 51 and 55 have substantially shorter job-search times than their younger counterparts.

It took men ages 56 to 60 an average of 8.7 months to find a new job, compared with 12.2 months for men 51 to 55. Women 51 to 55 took 7.4 months, compared with women 46 to 50, who averaged 8.6 months.

It's a slightly puzzling trend, because younger workers usually have an easier time getting work than their older counterparts. However, Bruccoleri said, older workers may be getting benefits through their former employers and don't have to hold out for a job that comes with health insurance, which is harder to get in today's economy.