NEW YORK (AP) — As job losses mount amid the economic turmoil, more people are turning to career-development Web sites even if they are still employed, a new study finds.
Nielsen Online is set to report today it found a 20 percent increase in unique visitors to job-search and career-development sites in January — 49.7 million, compared with 41.5 million a year earlier. The unemployment rate was 7.6 percent last month, the highest in more than 16 years.
“People are worried about their jobs,” said Chuck Schilling, Nielsen’s research director for agency and media analytics. “(Even) if they are employed they are worried about it.”
People age 65 or older represent the fastest-growing group among visitors to job sites. People are living longer, wishing to remain active and might be turning to the job market out of necessity, Schilling said.
“These are people that, perhaps, the technology explosion left behind and they are competing against people in their 20s who grew up in the information age and are seeking the same information-related jobs.”
Web sites and advertisers could appeal to older job seekers by providing content relevant to them, Schilling said.
