After a strong 2005, most experts expect the job market to enjoy a sustained vigor in 2006, as industries such as entertainment, health care and IT are all likely to add jobs in the coming year. Statistics released last month by California State University, Northridge researchers show that in October the Valley’s economy registered a mere 12,961 claims according to figures released by the California Employment Development Department and assembled by the San Fernando Valley Economic Research center at CSUN. The record low October claims number comes on the heels of a downward movement in unemployment insurance claims in the Valley that began in the first quarter of 2004. And according to Daniel Blake, the director of CSUN’s Valley Economic Research Center, 2006’s job picture will look similar to 2005’s. “We forecast for 1.7 or 1.8 percent of growth next year in terms of private sector jobs. Our expectations are consistent with what we forecast last spring. I think the job outlook for 2006 is relatively good. 2006 should be strong and stable,” Blake said. In particular, Blake singled out several industries that are shaping up to be strong in the coming year. “We have job growth indicators for the information sector (which Blake said consists of mainly entertainment jobs) of approximately 2,000 new jobs,” Blake said. “We’ll see growth in wholesale and retail trade, as well as professional business services, including jobs in business support to lawyers, consultants and CPAs. There will also be continued growth in health care, and the leisure activities industries.” The growth trends in the entertainment industry might come as a surprise to those who have been following the news out of the Valley, as Warner Bros has shed nearly 400 jobs in the past few months in its home video and television divisions. Additionally, the sale of Glendale-based Dreamworks SKG to Paramount also leaves those employees in a tenuous employment position. However, Steve MacDonald, the president of Film LA Inc. (formerly the Entertainment Industry Development Corporation) says that 2006 will be a generally good year for the industry. “Through November of this year our overall activity is up about five percent from last year, and we had a really strong 2004 as well,” MacDonald said. “We hope that it continue in 2006. There’s nothing we see that would seem to change our trend of growth.” Of course, runaway production has been a major problem in the industry as the migration of film shoots to other states and countries offering tax incentives has been rampant in recent years. However, the weakening of the United States dollar has weakened over the past year and a recent proposal to offer tax incentives to filmmakers staying in California is expected to be taken before the state legislature this spring. If the proposal passes through the legislature, it could be a boon for the industry job outlook, particularly for the many “below the line” workers who fill many of the entertainment industry jobs locally. Lenny Ciufo, the director of job training at Los Angeles Valley College, deals with employers on a daily basis and he maintains that many of the companies he has been dealing with are getting ready to hire in 2006. “The outlook for 2006 is very positive in regards to jobs, from a job training and a workforce development perspective,” Ciufo said. “We try to keep our ear close to the ground and the consensus seems to be that 2006 is going to be another very strong year.” Ciufo claims that three industries in particular have been hiring of late and will likely continue to be strong in coming year: the health care, security and childcare providing industries. Additionally, Ciufo expects there to be a great deal of available positions for prospective employees seeking call center jobs, as people grow frustrated in dealing with overseas customer service representatives. Another job-related development that has characterized the economic recovery of the past year and a half has been firms’ reliance on temporary workers to fill the company’s ranks. However, according to Blake, as the company continues to charge forward, employers may start hiring more and more full-time employees. “Usually as we go into more certain economic times, companies make some of their employees more permanent. The number of temps they’re employing goes down and permanent employees goes up,” Blake said. However, Judy Anzaldo, the executive director of Valencia-based staffing firm, Arch-Itech Solutions, believes that the next year will bode well for temp workers. “Unemployment is very low and it should continue to be low. It’s certainly an employees market right now. In the coming year, companies are likely to supplement their permanent needs with temporary employees,” Anzaldo said. “This often allows them to find that diamond in the rough and helps to alleviate some of the many costs of doing business in the state of California.” In the coming year, Anzaldo also added that she expected the 2006 job market to be exceptionally strong for software engineers, database administrators, and any job that involved a specialized technology related skill.