9 surprising jobs that have been around since 1850

By Vivian Giang, Business Insider 

 

Americans who worked as daguerreotypists or matchmakers once upon a time might have difficulty finding stable work today, but there are plenty of jobs that have passed the test of time, surviving tidal waves of economic change.

In some ways, consumers have become nostalgic for ways of olde. Just take a look around Brooklyn; its artisanal vibe harkens back to the 19th century, with a culture that supports homegrown, hand-crafted, limited-edition products, as Benjamin Wallace depicts in New York magazine. Whether it's 1850 or 2013, this scene shows that there will always be a place for certain niche occupations.
To find the jobs that have survived for more than a century, we combed through the U.S. Census of 1850, which is the first year the government collected data on what Americans do for work. We then compared it to today's Census list of the Standard Occupational Classifications, which is revised every decade and identifies 31,000 occupations in America.

Several jobs make the cut. While some have shown predictable stability -- dentists, bankers, engineers -- others are more unexpected. Here are nine surprising jobs that have been around since 1850:

1. Armorers: In the past, an armorer was someone who made personal armor. Today, it is someone who maintains and repairs small arms and weapons in the military or police force.

2. Charcoal burners (2012 median annual pay is $35,530): Someone who makes charcoal.

3. Cotton ginners (2010 median annual pay is $18,970): An agriculture worker whose job consists of
operating machinery and doing physical labor to produce cotton.

4. Cordwainers (2012 median annual pay is $24,310): A worker who operates and tends machines used in the production of shoeware.

5. Cork cutters (2012 median annual pay is $31,430): Someone who operates cutting machines to cut roles or slices of materials.

6. Enamellers: An artist who uses enamel paint to make jewelry and other decorative pieces.

7. Gold beaters: Someone who hammers sheets of gold into gold leaf.

8. Map makers (2010 median annual pay is $37,900): A technician that assists surveyors and cartographers in collecting data and making maps.

9. Riggers (2012 median annual pay is $42,660): A person that specializes in lifting and moving heavy objects with a crane or derrick.


This article originally appeared on Business Insider.

Want To Get Promoted Fast? These Are The Best 25 Companies For That

Some have great company culture and travel opportunities, too.

• By Business Insider
  

euthman, FlickrH-E-B employees at a holiday parade.

By Vivian Giang

Aside from high pay and competitive perks offered to attract talent, companies that provide regular feedback, advancement, and mentorship programs are better able to keep younger workers.

So where are the employers who support promotion from within? Based on company review surveys, career site Glassdoor.com put together a list of the top 25 companies that provide the best career opportunities.

"When employees share a company review on Glassdoor, we ask them to rate several workplace factors, including how they believe their employer is when it comes to offering career opportunities," says Scott Dobroski, a spokesman for Glassdoor. "If career advancement and growth opportunities are important for a job seeker, this rating provides insight into what employees have to say about the career opportunities at a specific employer."

Many companies that made it on last year's list, such as Bain & Company, Edelman, and CareerBuilder, reappeared on this year's list. Newcomers this year include Fluor, Chevron, and the Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts.

To break any ties, Glassdoor calculated ratings to the thousandth decimal. Company ratings are based on a 5.0 scale, with 5 being the best possible score.

25. Fluor

Photo: Fluor Corporation celebrates its 100-year anniversary and rings the NYSE Opening Bell.
Career opportunities rating: 3.9
What employees think:
"High priority is placed on employee development. A great place to work if you are a self motivated individual. If not, also a great place to work. Lots of resources for development whether it is technical or non technical. Lots of opportunity to advance your career." —  Fluor Process/Specialty Engineer III (Houston, TX)

24. Chevron

Photo: Oil rig workers sink more pipe on the Chevron Texaco drilling platform January 15, 2003 near the Saudi Arabian border, Kuwait.
Career opportunities rating: 3.7
What employees think:
"Plenty of room to advance and apply for jobs internally rather than look outside. 9/80 work schedules with great bonus plan and annual salary raises." — Chevron Drilling IT Professional (Houston, TX)

23. H-E-B

Career opportunities rating: 3.7
What employees think:
"They train you for management positions. The pay and flexibility. The opportunity to transfer anywhere throughout Texas and the U.S." – H-E-B Deli Associate (Missouri City, TX)

Read more  Want To Get Promoted Fast? These Are The Best 25 Companies For That

Source: Glassdoor

Middle-wage jobs that are on the rise

• By Debra Auerbach

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The makeup of the workforce has changed over the past few decades. The impact of recessions, along with technological advancements, offshoring and other factors, have caused some industries and job types to strengthen while others have declined. In fact, research from the Federal Reserve shows that the share of middle-skill or middle-wage jobs in the U.S. workforce has dropped from 25 percent in 1985 to just above 15 percent today.

“Middle-wage positions sustained heavier hits during the recession than other wage groups,” says Matt Ferguson, CEO of CareerBuilder. “This is further indication of a hollowing effect economists have warned about, where middle-wage jobs are thinning out — creating a greater concentration of either high-wage or low-wage positions.”

Yet despite the hits middle-wage occupations have taken, a new study by CareerBuilder and Economic Modeling Specialists Intl. shows that there are various fields and states where these positions are thriving*. “While this trend [of middle-wage jobs declining] has become more pronounced in the last decade — and has broader implications for the U.S. economy — there are still areas of manufacturing, health care, energy and other fields where employment for middle-wage workers is stable and growing at a healthy pace,” Ferguson says.

Middle-wage occupations that are growing
According to the study, 25 percent of all new jobs added in the U.S. since 2010 fall in the middle-wage range, trailing the share of both high-wage jobs (29 percent) and low-wage jobs (46 percent). While various factors are driving the declining share of middle-wage jobs (defined as those jobs that pay between $13.84 and $21.13 per hour for the purpose of this study**), a variety of occupations in this segment have performed well post-recession, listed below. Most of these occupations typically require on-the-job training, work experience or short-term certificates and degrees that community colleges specialize in.

• Customer service representative: Added 132,690 jobs since 2010, up 6 percent; median hourly pay: $14.91
• Heavy/tractor-trailer truck driver: Added 118,541 jobs since 2010, up 7 percent; median hourly pay: $18.41
• Bookkeeping, accounting and auditing clerk: Added 77,162 jobs since 2010, up 4 percent; median hourly pay: $17.02
• Construction laborer: Added 69,148 jobs since 2010, up 6 percent; median hourly pay: $14.60
• Machinist: Added 49,906 jobs since 2010, up 14 percent; median hourly pay: $19.01
• Welder, cutter, solderer and brazer: Added 38,153 jobs since 2010, up 11 percent; median hourly pay: $17.58
• Automotive service technician and mechanic: Added 36,229 jobs since 2010, up 5 percent; median hourly pay: $16.47
• Inspector, tester, sorter, sampler and weigher: Added 34,424 jobs since 2010, up 8 percent; median hourly pay: $16.81
• Medical assistant: Added 29,949 jobs since 2010, up 5 percent; median hourly pay: $14.35
• Computer-controlled machine tool operator: Added 21,307 jobs since 2010, up 17 percent; median hourly pay: $17.14
• Oil, gas and mining service unit operator: Added 16,690 jobs since 2010, up 38 percent; median hourly pay: $20.16

States fostering middle-wage growth
Wyoming leads the nation in the percentage of middle-wage jobs added in a state post-recession, according to the study. Forty-five percent of new jobs that were created in Wyoming since 2010 have been middle-wage, well ahead of other high-performing states: Iowa (37 percent), North Dakota (36 percent) and Michigan (35 percent).

Texas (25 percent) and California (23 percent) have created the largest total number of new middle-wage jobs in the nation, but they’re in the middle of the pack in terms of the share of all new jobs.

At the bottom, Rhode Island is the only state that’s lost middle-wage jobs over the past few years. Mississippi (10 percent) and New York (13 percent) have the lowest share of new middle-wage jobs among states that have seen job increases.

For more information, visit http://www.economicmodeling.com/2013/10/03/middle-skill-jobs-that-have-survived-and-the-states-that-are-fostering-them/.

4 Retail Jobs That Pay Surprisingly Well

• By Dan Fastenberg

Retail salesperson is the most common job in America. The sector is still growing, but most of the jobs come with lousy compensation. The average salary? Just $25,310 per year, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

There's no great mystery as to why companies keep salaries low -- it's an easy way to keep profit margins up. But Zeynep Ton, a professor at MIT's Sloan School of Management, argued in an article in the Harvard Business Review that the tactic usually backfires. By cutting back on manpower, companies experience a drop in performance, which, in turn, leads to a dip in customer satisfaction, and then the ultimate corporate problem -- a drop-off in sales. Home Depot is a case in point:
​

When former GE executive Robert Nardelli became CEO, at the end of 2000, he cut staffing levels and increased the percentage of part-timers to reduce costs and boost profits. Those moves achieved both goals immediately, but they eventually caused Home Depot's excellent customer service -- the company's claim to fame and, arguably, primary source of competitive advantage -- to suffer, customer satisfaction to plunge, and same-store sales growth to drop and even go negative in some years.

Treating workers well pays off in the long run, Ton argues. She says that four employers, Costco, Trader Joe's, QuikTrip and the Spanish supermarket chain Mercadona, are prime examples. Here's why:
​

1. Trader Joe's

The Trader Joe's Company has more than 365 stores in more than 30 states, and offers upscale grocery fare such as health foods, produce and nutritional supplements. It has some 10,000 employees.

Starting salary: $40,000 to $60,000. Managers also have the potential to earn six-figure salaries.
Benefits: Trader Joe's contributes an additional 15.4 percent of your gross income each year to your retirement account.

2. Costco

Costco Wholesale Corp. has more than 590 membership warehouse stores in 40 U.S. states and Australia, Canada, Japan, Mexico, Puerto Rico, South Korea, Taiwan and the U.K. It has roughly 174,000 employees.

Starting salary: Stockers and cashiers make on average between $11.84 to $12.61 an hour. The average starting salary for a full-time employee is $45,000 a year, compared to just $17,000 for Sam's Club.
What the CEO says: "At Costco, we know that paying employees good wages makes business sense."

​3. QuikTrip

QuikTrip Corp. operates more than 600 gasoline/convenience stores in 10 states, mostly in the central U.S. It has roughly 9,600 employees.

Starting salary: An entry-level clerk earns an average of $8.66 an hour, but most store managers are promoted from within and are paid relatively well. The overall salary average for all staff is $32,966.
Happy employees: Fortune magazine has named QuikTrip one of the 100 best companies to work for in every year since 2003. It has robust training programs for workers -- even low-level employees receive two weeks of training. Employees also like working here -- staff turnover is 22 percent, the lowest in the industry.

​4. Mercadona

Mercadona S.A. has 1,419 stores throughout Spain. It has roughly 70,000 employees and is expanding, having hired 6,500 employees last year alone. It is known for offering consumers the lowest prices in Spain.

20 companies hiring in October

• By Debra Auerbach

Did you make it a goal to find a job or switch careers by the end of the year? Are you panicking because it’s already October?
Never fear, we’re here to help. Take a look at this list of 20 companies hiring this month. If you find a job that suits your abilities and interests, and you apply soon, you may very well be starting a new career before 2014.
1. A+E Networks
Industry: Television
Sample job titles: Fall intern — Lifetime scripted series programming, vice president — non-fiction programming, manager, ad sales systems — information technology
Location: Chicago; Los Angeles; New York; Stamford, Conn.
2. Alcon
Industry: Eye care/medicine and device manufacturing
Sample job titles: Manufacturing engineer, human resources manager — plant, ERP eCompliance manager
Location: Fort Worth, Texas; Irvine, Calif.; Washington, D.C.
3. Ascendo Resources
Industry: Accounting and finance, IT
Sample job titles: Senior accountant, controller, financial analyst, tax manager, senior systems engineer
Location: Atlanta; Boca Raton, Coral Gables, Ft. Lauderdale and Miami, Fla.
4. Bally Technologies
Industry: Gaming/IT
Sample job titles: Quality assurance engineer, software engineer, communications, marketing, security officer, game artist, field service technician
Location: California, Iowa, New Jersey, Nevada, Oklahoma
5. Cash Store
Industry: Retail, banking/financial services, credit/loan/collections
Sample job titles: District manager, assistant store manager, store manager
Location: Idaho, Illinois, Michigan, New Mexico, Texas, Utah, Wisconsin
6. DCS Corp.
Industry: Defense
Sample job titles: Program engineer, .NET developer, test engineer, weapons technician, contracts specialist, security analyst
Location: Aberdeen and Lexington Park, Md.; Alexandria and Virginia Beach, Va.; Beavercreek, Ohio; Nashua, N.H.; Ridgecrest, Calif.; Warren, Mich.
7. Flextronics
Industry: Engineering and manufacturing
Sample job titles: Systems programmer, quality engineer, test engineer, Computer Numerical Control machine operator, quality control inspector, project engineer, mechanical engineer   
Location: Austin, Dallas and Fort Worth, Texas; San Jose, Calif.
8. Ivie & Associates
Industry: Marketing/IT
Sample job titles: Graphic designer, media team lead, Web developer
Location: Arkansas, Idaho, Illinois, Missouri, Oklahoma, Texas
9. LEGOLAND Florida
Industry: Entertainment
Sample job titles: Attractions supervisor, creative services coordinator, attractions manager, financial analyst, F&B executive chef, costume character, park medic (EMT/paramedic), entertainment team lead, rides mechanic, retail warehouse associate, entertainment technician, project manager
Location: Florida
10. Main Event Entertainment
Industry: Entertainment
Sample job titles: Department operations manager, general manager, sales manager
Location: Atlanta, Ga.; Tempe, Ariz.; Texas
11. Pace Analytical Services
Industry: Environmental/scientific
Sample job titles: Analytical chemist, regulatory specialist, lab technician
Location: Minneapolis/St. Paul
12. Pathways Home Health and Hospice
Industry: Health care
Sample job titles: Hospice aide, registered nurse, licensed vocational nurse
Location: Oakland, San Francisco and Sunnyvale, Calif.
13. Readerlink Distribution Services LLC
Industry: Distribution services
Sample job titles: Merchandiser, senior Windows developer, HR generalist
Location: Alabama, Arkansas, California, Illinois, Michigan, New Jersey,  Ohio, Virginia, Washington, D.C.
14. Sunstate Equipment
Industry: Rental equipment
Sample job titles: Driver, line mechanic, field service mechanic, washrack/yard attendant, inside sales representative, outside sales representative
Location: Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, Utah
15. Talagy
Industry: IT, sales, accounting and finance
Sample job titles: IT project manager, outside sales representative, senior internal auditor
Location: Nationwide
16. UHY Advisors
Industry: Public accounting
Sample job titles: Tax and audit professional (all levels)
Location: Albany, N.Y.; Atlanta; Chicago; Columbia, Md.; Dallas; Farmington Hills and Sterling Heights, Mich.; Houston; New York City; St. Louis; Washington, D.C.
17. UniTek Global Services
Industry: Engineering and construction management
Sample job titles: Alarm installer, wireless technician
Location: Nationwide
18. Vector Marketing
Industry: Direct sales
Sample job titles: Sales/customer service — entry level/part time
Location: Nationwide
19. Waste Connections
Industry: Solid waste services
Sample job titles: Staff internal auditor, diesel mechanic, maintenance manager, residential driver, garbage truck driver, route supervisor, assistant controller
Location: Anchorage, Alaska; Belle Fourche, S.D.; Denver; El Paso and The Woodlands, Texas; Memphis, Tenn.; Oklahoma City; Omaha, Neb.; Rosemount, Minn.; Vancouver, Wash.
20. Wells Fargo
Industry: Banking/finance
Sample job titles: Analytics consultant, personal banker, computer systems engineer
Location: Nationwide

15 jobs that pay $15 an hour

• By Susan Ricker

Besides researching job opportunities and working on your résumé, one of the most important parts of a job search is knowing the needs of your budget and the types of jobs that will meet those needs.

If a job that earns $15 an hour is the right fit for your budget and lifestyle, check out these 15 jobs, all of which earn about $15 an hour and require varying levels of work experience and education.

1. Agricultural and food science technician*
Job description: Under the supervision of scientists, agricultural and food science technicians measure and analyze the quality of food and agricultural products.
Typical education level: Associates degree
Median hourly pay: $15.75

2. Bill and account collector
Job description: Bill and account collectors, sometimes called collectors, try to recover payment on overdue bills. They negotiate repayment plans with debtors and help them find solutions to make paying their overdue bills easier.
Typical education level: High school diploma or equivalent
Median hourly pay: $15.05

3. Dental assistant
Job description: Dental assistants have many tasks, ranging from patient care to record keeping, in a dental office. Their duties vary by state and by the dentists’ offices where they work.
Typical education level: High school diploma or equivalent
Median hourly pay: $16.09

4. Dispensing optician
Job description: Dispensing opticians help fit eyeglasses and contact lenses, following prescriptions from ophthalmologists and optometrists. They also help customers decide which eyeglass frames or type of contact lenses to buy.
Typical education level: High school diploma or equivalent
Median hourly pay: $15.84

5. Fitness trainer and instructor
Job description: Fitness trainers and instructors lead, instruct and motivate individuals or groups in exercise activities, including cardiovascular exercise (exercises for the heart and blood system), strength training and stretching. They work with people of all ages and skill levels.
Typical education level: High school diploma or equivalent
Median hourly pay: $14.95

6. Home entertainment equipment installer and repairer
Job description: Home entertainment equipment installers and repairers set up and fix household audio and video equipment, such as televisions, stereo components and home theater systems.
Typical education level: High school diploma or equivalent
Median hourly pay: $15.84

7. Medical records and health information technician
Job description: Medical records and health information technicians organize and manage health information data by ensuring its quality, accuracy, accessibility and security in both paper and electronic systems. They use various classification systems to code and categorize patient information for reimbursement purposes, for databases and registries and to maintain patients’ medical and treatment histories.
Typical education level: Associate degree
Median hourly pay: $15.55

8. Medical transcriptionist
Job description: Medical transcriptionists listen to voice recordings that physicians and other health professionals make and convert them into written reports. They interpret medical terminology and abbreviations in preparing patients’ medical histories, discharge summaries and other documents.
Typical education level: Postsecondary non-degree award
Median hourly pay: $15.82

9. Metal and plastic machine worker
Job description: Metal and plastic machine workers set up and operate machines that cut, shape and form metal and plastic materials or pieces.
Typical education level: High school diploma or equivalent
Median hourly pay: $15.34

10. Painting and coating worker
Job description: Painting and coating workers paint and coat a wide range of products, including cars, jewelry and candy.
Typical education level: High school diploma or equivalent
Median hourly pay: $14.99

11. Printing worker
Job description: Printing workers produce print material in three stages: prepress, press and binding and finishing. They review specifications, identify and fix problems with printing equipment and assemble pages.
Typical education level: Associates degree
Median hourly pay: $15.94

12. Quality control inspector
Job description: Quality control inspectors examine products and materials for defects or deviations from manufacturers’ or industry specifications.
Typical education level: High school diploma or equivalent
Median hourly pay: $15.88

13. Rehabilitation counselor
Job description: Rehabilitation counselors help people with emotional and physical disabilities live independently. They help their clients overcome personal, social and professional effects of disabilities as they relate to employment or independent living.
Typical education level: Master’s degree
Median hourly pay: $15.55

14. Small engine mechanic
Job description: Small engine mechanics inspect, service and repair motorized power equipment. Mechanics often specialize in one type of equipment, such as motorcycles, motorboats or outdoor power equipment.
Typical education level: High school diploma or equivalent
Median hourly pay: $15.29

15. Travel agent
Job description: Travel agents sell transportation, lodging and admission to entertainment activities to individuals and groups who are planning trips. They offer advice on destinations, plan trip itineraries and make travel arrangements for clients.
Typical education level: High school diploma or equivalent
Median hourly pay: $15.32

Top 10 LGBT Employment-Friendly States

You can be fired for being openly gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender in 29 states.

• By Dan Fastenberg
  

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This past summer the Supreme Court overturned the Defense of Marriage Act and in effect paved the way for marriage equality nationwide. But what about gay rights in the workplace? It's still legal to be fired for being openly lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender in 29 states. Activists, however, are pushing for the passage of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, which would protect all LGBT workers from discrimination in hiring, firing and other employment matters on the basis of sexual orientation.

With no national protection on the books, some states and cities have simply done more than others to protect LGBT workers. And the human resources company XpertHR has just compiled a list of the Top 10 LGBT-Employment Friendly States. The analysis was based on a series of criteria, including the state's existing legal framework and its history of protecting LGBT workers.

Six of the top ten states are from the Northeast, which is where the modern gay rights revolution began with the 1969 riots at the Stonewall Bar in New York City. But as Carmelyn P. Malalis, the co-chair of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender (LGBT) Workplace Rights Practice Group at Outten & Golden LLP told XpertHR, this story is only developing in one direction. "Employers that have not changed their policies are behind the curve trying to catch up," she said.

See below for the top 10.

1. California

Marriage Laws: In June, the Supreme Court also said the advocates of Proposition 8 banning same-sex marriage had no standing to challenge a lower court ruling that invalidated the referendum. As a result, the state's 2010 legalization of same-sex marriage was once again valid.
Workplace Laws: Connecticut state law prohibits employment discrimination based on sexual orientation as well as gender identity. And unlike most states, California state FMLA law provides leave and benefits to same-sex couples.

Find a job now in California.

2. Connecticut

Marriage Laws: Connecticut legalized same-sex marriage in 2008.
Workplace Laws: Connecticut state law prohibits employment discrimination based on sexual orientation as well as gender identity. Same-sex partners of state employees have been provided benefits since 2000.

Find a job now in Connecticut.

3. Iowa

Marriage Laws: Iowa legalized same-sex marriage in 2009, making it the first Midwestern state to move towards legalization.
Workplace Laws: Iowa state law prohibits employment discrimination based on sexual orientation as well as gender identity. The state's hate crime law also covers individuals based on sexual orientation.

Find a job now in Iowa.

4. Maine

Marriage Laws: Maine legalized same-sex marriage in 2012. It was the first time a state legalized same-sex marriage through the ballot.
Workplace Laws: Maine state law prohibits employment discrimination based on sexual orientation as well as gender identity. Maine allows same-sex partners to take advantage of family leave policies.

Find a job now in Maine.

5. Massachusetts

Marriage Laws: Massachusetts legalized same-sex marriage in 2003. It was the first state to do so.
Workplace Laws: Massachusetts state law prohibits employment discrimination based on sexual orientation as well as gender identity. Same-sex partners are also permitted to receive benefits.

Find a job now in Massachusetts.

6. Minnesota

Marriage Laws: Minnesota legalized same-sex marriage in 2013.
Workplace Laws: Minnesota state law prohibits employment discrimination based on sexual orientation as well as gender identity. Minnesota was the first state to enact gender identity protections in the nation.

Find a job now in Minnesota.

7. New York

Marriage Laws: New York legalized same-sex marriage in 2011.
Workplace Laws: New York state law prohibits employment discrimination based on sexual orientation. Same-sex partners are provided with state FMLA rights and benefits.

Find a job now in New York.

8. Rhode Island

Marriage Laws: Rhode Island legalized same-sex marriage in 2013.
Workplace Laws: Rhode Island state law bans discrimination based on both sexual orientation and gender identity. In-state family leave rights and benefits are extended to same-sex partners.

Find a job now in Rhode Island.

9. Vermont

Marriage Laws: Vermont legalized same-sex marriage in 2009. This was the first time same-sex marriage had been enacted through the state legislature.
Workplace Laws: Vermont law prohibits employment discrimination based on both sexual orientation as well as gender identity. The state FMLA law also expands coverage for same-sex partners and entitles them to leave benefits.

Find a job now in Vermont.

10. Washington

Marriage Laws: Washington legalized same-sex marriage in 2012.
Workplace Laws: Washington prohibits employment discrimination based on sexual orientation as well as gender identity. State law also makes illegal malicious harassment and violence against LGBT individuals on the basis of both sexual orientation and gender.