| 你所不知的美国“微职业” 对于美国的职业市场，我们到底知道多少？对于这个问题，恐怕所有的人都不敢大声的说“自己很清楚”，特别是对于像我们这样的第一代移民而言。很多人来到美国，见识和体验的，也就是那么几个比较常见的职业。实际上，在美国生活，只要是满足人们的需要的地方，就会产生满足需要的职业。在这里，列出了美国就业规模最小的十大职业，我称之为“微小的职业市场”。 对于我们多数的人而言，找到一份薪水不错的工作，就是生活的“最高境界”之一，也是融入“主流”的最重要一环。为此而获得必要的良好教育，也就成为顺理成章值得做的事情。实际上，在美国生活的天地，要比你所想象的大的多。 天空之高，即使你放开想象力来展翅飞翔，你也不会觉得空间有限。 还是那句话，在美国过日子，你除了保住一份薪水不错的工作之外，你还得好好的深入生活，理解美国社会。既然你已经（至少是事实上）做出了让子子孙孙在美国这片热土生活下去的决心，你就没有必要过的遮遮掩掩，像个害羞的小姑娘。 美国的生活丰富多彩，有足够的空间让你活出一份独特的精彩。你完全没有必要去追求那个虚无缥缈的大富大贵，即使是活的平平凡凡，你的人生也照样可以过的有滋有味。你所需要的，就是深入，在你内心的深处，以这里为家。 如果你老是将自己当个客人，老是想着在这里捞上一把，等到退休之后再回到故乡去享受晚年，那么，你实际上就是在日日夜夜的为自己“混混”“庸庸”的日子“添砖加瓦”了。再者，你的那个“梦想”，等到了真的来临之时，你不仅会看到那是一个非常不现实的幻想，而且，还是一个非常不值得你做出的一种选择。不要生活在幻觉之中，醒来吧，回到活生生的现实来。 在来美国之前，很多人一直以为，到了美国，呆个一年半载，自己不仅会英文流利，而且还会自自然然的成为美国通。 来了美国之后，我们才发现，这是一个多么幼稚的期待。特别是在美国呆了好几年之后，还是不得不面对这样一个尴尬的现实——英文还是不流利，语言沟通还是障碍重重——的时候，自己才意识到，自己按照自以为是而过的，到底是多么愚蠢的日子。 美国是一个强调参与、鼓励自发和自主的社会。如果你不主动，你在这里是不可能等到居委会的大妈、大嫂来上门游说你出门的。如果你那样过日子的话，那么，你的社会空间之狭小，恐怕最终让你自己想起来都觉得后怕和后悔。 参与吧，贡献本身就是一份“索取”和获得。 不学不行：美国独特的捐赠文化 美国人最讨厌的行当和机构 The Smallest Professions in America August 27, 2012 by Mike Sauter Approximately 133 million people are employed in the United States as of May 2011, working in hundreds of different occupations, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). Different jobs vary in size. Some categories employ millions of Americans, while a select few count only hundreds among their ranks. 24/7 Wall St. reviewed BLS data to find the 10 jobs with the fewest people employed. There are nearly 4.3 million retail salespeople in the United States, making it the biggest occupation in the country. There are more than 2.7 million nurses, 1.4 million elementary school teachers and more than 1.2 million maintenance workers. However, there are only roughly 1,000 prosthodontists and just 300 farm labor contractors in the entire country. On the surface, a few of these jobs appear obsolete — think wood patternmakers and radio operators. Yet many of them expect to see growth — albeit small — in headcount between 2010 and 2020. Several other jobs, such as geographers, are expected to grow substantially during the decade. As a result of the small number of people in these jobs, many of these occupations experience major fluctuations. While there were 1,240 wood patternmakers in 2010, there were only 820 in 2011, a decline of about 34%. The jobs on this list require different levels of education and training. Farm labor contractors do not need a high school diploma. However, prosthodontists generally require doctorate degrees. Similarly, the jobs on this list have a wide range of pay. Prosthodontists had a mean wage in the low six-digit figures in 2011. However, the annual pay of fabric menders, an occupation that requires minimal education, was not even $30,000. 24/7 Wall St. identified the jobs that employ the fewest people, based on Bureau of Labor Statistics 2010 Occupational Outlook Handbook data. While 2011 job-count data were available from the BLS, we opted for the 2010 data, as self-employment figures were included. We also considered the mean wages for these occupations, along with the pay at the 25th, 75th and 90th percentile in each profession. In addition, we reviewed the projected headcount growth between 2010 and 2020 from BLS National Employment Matrix to determine whether these jobs are growing or shrinking. These are the smallest professions in America. 10. Geographers
> Number of jobs: 1,600
> Median hourly wage: $35.94
> Median annual wage: $74,760 Geographers are responsible for analyzing the geographic traits of specific areas, local and global. Though the number of geographers is expected to increase by 35.4% from 2010 to 2020, this would still mean only about 2,200 geographer jobs would exist by the end of the decade. The median annual wage for geographers was $74,760 in 2011, up slightly from $72,800 in 2010. Some geographers were especially well paid, however, with those in the 90th percentile earning more than $104,000 last year. 9. Models
> Number of jobs: 1,400
> Median hourly wage: $8.79
> Median annual wage: $18,670 Full-time modeling is certainly not as glamorous as the media makes the profession out to be, and the position is not as lucrative as it is portrayed, either. While the superstar, household name models can end up making millions of dollars, most models make quite a modest living — the median pay for a model in 2011 was a mere $18,670, or just $8.97 an hour. Headcount for models is expected to grow 14% between 2010 and 2020, which the BLS notes is as fast as the average amount of growth for all occupations. Unsurprisingly, the BLS notes that modeling attracts a lot of applicants, and “competition for jobs will be strong.” 8. Segmental Pavers
> Number of jobs: 1,300
> Median hourly wage: $15.55
> Median annual wage: $32,340 According to the BLS, segmental pavers “lay out, cut, and place segmental paving units.” Though there were just 1,300 such workers in the U.S. in 2010, this number is projected to rise by 33.1% between then and 2020, when there will be 1,800 jobs. The job does not pay exceptionally well; the median annual wage for segmental pavers was $32,340 in 2011, below the national median of $34,460 for all occupations. However, the 2011 median wage does represent a moderate improvement of the 2010 median annual wage, which was $30,430. 7. Patternmakers (Wood)
> Number of jobs: 1,200 (tied for sixth highest)
> Median hourly wage: $18.69
> Median annual wage: $38,870 Wood patternmakers, the BLS notes, are concentrated in just a handful of states. Both Michigan and Illinois have between 80 and 100 patternmakers, according to the BLS, while 40 to 50 patternmakers are located in California, North Carolina, Oregon and Pennsylvania. The BLS says the field is expected to grow in headcount by just 4.3% between 2010 and 2020, compared to the 14.3% increase for all U.S. jobs. The median 2011 wage of $38,870 was a moderate increase from $34,640 in 2010. The median 2011 salary was below the $39,950 metal and plastic patternmakers made, as well as below the $39,800 fabric and apparel patternmakers earned. 6. Radio Operators
> Number of jobs: 1,200 (tied for sixth highest)
> Median hourly wage: $21.54
> Median annual wage: $44,810 Compared to tablet computers, smartphones and even smart TVs, radios seem old-fashioned. It should come as no surprise that there are few radio operators in the United States. However, the number of radio operators is expected to grow by 7% between 2010 and 2020. The median annual wage of a radio operator in 2011 was $44,810, barely up from $44,630 in 2010. Operators in the 75th percentile made over $58,640 in 2011, and those in the 90th percentile made over $71,080. 5. Locomotive Firers
> Number of jobs: 1,100 (tied for fourth highest)
> Median hourly wage: $21.50
> Median annual wage: $44,729 Locomotive firers monitor locomotive instruments and watch for dragging equipment, obstacles on rights-of-way and train signals during a run. The median wage of a locomotive firer is $44,720, an improvement over the $43,510 in 2010. The locomotive firers at the top of the pay scale have the potential to make substantially more money. Those making at least $53,450 are in the 75th percentile, while those making at least $71,360 are in the 90th percentile. The number of locomotive firers between 2010 and 2020 is expected to decline by an additional 5.1% between 2010 and 2020. 4. Mathematical Technicians
> Number of jobs: 1,100 (tied for fourth highest)
> Median hourly wage: $22.32
> Median annual wage: $46,420 Mathematical technicians “apply standardized mathematical formulas, principles, and methodology to technological problems in engineering and physical sciences in relation to specific industrial and research objectives, processes, equipment, and products,” notes the BLS. Working as a mathematical technician often involves data processing, data translating and assisting with project planning. The occupation’s headcount is expected to grow 6.2% between 2010 and 2020. Compared to the 3,100 mathematicians whose median income was $101,040 in 2011, the median pay for a mathematical technician was less than half — $46,420. On the bright side, the median mathematical technician pay rose by $1,540 between 2010 and 2011. 3. Prosthodontists
> Number of jobs: 1000
> Median hourly wage: $52.55
> Median annual wage: $109,300 Prosthodontics — one of nine dental specialties — is defined by the American Dental Association as the specialty dealing with patients “with clinical conditions associated with missing or deficient teeth and/or oral and maxillofacial (jaws and face) tissues.” Despite the solid six-digit average pay, prosthodontists at the bottom of the pay scale are not faring nearly as well. Prosthodontists in the 25th percentile for income brought in less than $45,730 in 2011. Furthermore, prosthodontists are not paid nearly as much as some other medical professions. The median pay in 2011 for pediatricians was $158,170, while for podiatrists it was $119,250. Between 2010 and 2020, the number of prosthodontists is expected to grow by 21.4%. 2. Fabric Menders (Except Garment)
> Number of jobs: 800
> Median hourly wage: $13.45
> Median annual wage: $27,970 Fabric menders repair defects such as tears and holes in fabric products, including “draperies, linens, parachutes and tents,” according to the BLS. As of 2010, 15.2% were self-employed, which is higher than the 7.8% of all American workers. The field is very small, with approximately people 800 working as fabric menders in 2010, and it is expected to maintain approximately that many positions through 2010. The need for fabric menders is very small given the fabric repair products out on the market, many of which sell for less than $10, such as the $6.95 Gore-Tex fabric mender. The median annual salary of a fabric mender in 2011 was only $27,930, compared to a national median salary of $34,460. Nevertheless, it was an improvement from 2010’s median salary of $26,380. 1. Farm Labor Contractors
> Number of jobs: 300
> Median hourly wage: $14.02
> Median annual wage: $29,150 While farmers have always been known to be a hard-working bunch, they often have a little help on the field. The number of farm labor contractors in 2010 was approximately just 300 in 2010, and that number is not expected to change at all from 2010. The trappings for contractors are not as much as the farmers. The median farm labor contractor pay in 2011 was $29,150, less than half the $64,660 median salary that farmers, ranchers and other agricultural managers made. And while the median salary for farmers, ranchers and other agricultural managers was up $3,910 in 2011 from 2010, the median salary of farm labor contractors actually fell by $840 in that same time period. -Samuel Weigley and Alexander E.M. Hess 美国人最讨厌的行当和机构 |
