Possible move to the area. Good job market? (Phoenix, Tucson: hotels, transfer)

[purpleducky]

My husband has an interview in Tucson in early September so I'm starting to research the area incase a move is happening. We currently live in the Mid-west and have two small children. I also work so would need to find something quite quickly after following him down. What is the job market like? I'm in Human Resources. Is it a nice place to raise a family?

[grmi66]

Use the search function and it should answer most of what you want to know. Even in the best of times a job search in Tucson can be a challenge.

[Jukesgrrl]

Tucson is a very nice place to raise a family as long as:
1. You are careful about where you send your children to school,
2. Your family is active and likes things like hiking, biking, golf, and swimming,
3. You don't mind being a two-hour drive away from a large city and a five+-hour drive away from anywhere else.

I would never recommend this as a place to move if you don't have a job lined up, but if it's a transfer that's a different story. There are nice family neighborhoods here, the scenery is beautiful, the housing market is still tipped in favor or buyers, and NO WINTER.

For you, employment may be a bit of an issue. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, this month's unemployment rate in Tucson is 7.3%. That's a smidge better than the national average (but worse than Phoenix and Albuquerque). But like the national average it doesn't count people who have been "looking" longer than their benefits held out, people who were forced to accept a job far below their capabilities, and people who have left town because they couldn't find a job here.

If your children are young, you are probably below middle-age, which is a good thing. Older workers have a difficult time finding employment in Tucson. The longer and more impressive your resume is, the more likely you will be told you are "overqualified" for available openings. Since your field is human resources, you'll have to keep in mind that Tucson is NOT a corporate center of any kind. Most employers have few employees and don't need big HR departments. Of course they may still need the skills of one HR manager, but here you run into a different problem. Because of the scarcity of jobs in Tucson, people who have a decent one tend to hold onto it with a vengeance. Workers do not move around among employers as they often do in other cities. An unusually large percentage of the people I know here have had the same job for 15 years or more.

The top ten employers in Tucson are:
1. Raytheon (about 12,000 employees)
2. University of Arizona
3. State of Arizona
4. Davis-Monthan Air Force Base
5. Tucson Unified School District
6. Walmart
7. Pima County
8. U.S. Army Intelligence Center at Fort Huachuca
9. City of Tucson
10. Phelps-Dodge Mining (4,900 employees)

You will see that only numbers 1, 6, and 10 are private employers with number 6 hiring mostly part-time workers. Anything that is funded by the government is probably trying to get rid of employees instead of hiring new ones. The U of A tries to employ its own grads and people with deep ties to the community tend to get the city, county, and state jobs. That leaves companies employing about 3,000 people or far fewer. Hospitals and other medical facilities predominate on that list. The hospitality industry used to be big, but many of the larger resorts/hotels/spas in the area are in bad financial shape.

Two other things to keep in mind. Arizona is a right to work state; there is little union influence here. As a result, salaries tend to be lower than in states with a history of unionism. And Tucson's biggest industry is retirement. Therefore businesses serving the needs of older people (healthcare, leisure activities, and economy-anything) predominate.

Here are some recent C-D threads that discuss employment:
What are Tucson hiring managers looking for?
Need Advice on Moving to Arizona
Grim picture of Tucson painted without leaders' 'awakening'

Here's an article about employment from the University's newspaper The Daily Wildcat:
Arizona Daily Wildcat :: Low ranking education system, high unemployment rates earn Tucson sixth-poorest in nation

Some facts about Tucson:
Tucson Facts | Population, Housing, Taxes, Employers, Geography

[purpleducky]

Thank you!

Originally Posted by Jukesgrrl

Tucson is a very nice place to raise a family as long as:
1. You are careful about where you send your children to school,
2. Your family is active and likes things like hiking, biking, golf, and swimming,
3. You don't mind being a two-hour drive away from a large city and a five+-hour drive away from anywhere else.

I would never recommend this as a place to move if you don't have a job lined up, but if it's a transfer that's a different story. There are nice family neighborhoods here, the scenery is beautiful, the housing market is still tipped in favor or buyers, and NO WINTER.

For you, employment may be a bit of an issue. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, this month's unemployment rate in Tucson is 7.3%. That's a smidge better than the national average (but worse than Phoenix and Albuquerque). But like the national average it doesn't count people who have been "looking" longer than their benefits held out, people who were forced to accept a job far below their capabilities, and people who have left town because they couldn't find a job here.

If your children are young, you are probably below middle-age, which is a good thing. Older workers have a difficult time finding employment in Tucson. The longer and more impressive your resume is, the more likely you will be told you are "overqualified" for available openings. Since your field is human resources, you'll have to keep in mind that Tucson is NOT a corporate center of any kind. Most employers have few employees and don't need big HR departments. Of course they may still need the skills of one HR manager, but here you run into a different problem. Because of the scarcity of jobs in Tucson, people who have a decent one tend to hold onto it with a vengeance. Workers do not move around among employers as they often do in other cities. An unusually large percentage of the people I know here have had the same job for 15 years or more.

The top ten employers in Tucson are:
1. Raytheon (about 12,000 employees)
2. University of Arizona
3. State of Arizona
4. Davis-Monthan Air Force Base
5. Tucson Unified School District
6. Walmart
7. Pima County
8. U.S. Army Intelligence Center at Fort Huachuca
9. City of Tucson
10. Phelps-Dodge Mining (4,900 employees)

You will see that only numbers 1, 6, and 10 are private employers with number 6 hiring mostly part-time workers. Anything that is funded by the government is probably trying to get rid of employees instead of hiring new ones. The U of A tries to employ its own grads and people with deep ties to the community tend to get the city, county, and state jobs. That leaves companies employing about 3,000 people or far fewer. Hospitals and other medical facilities predominate on that list. The hospitality industry used to be big, but many of the larger resorts/hotels/spas in the area are in bad financial shape.

Two other things to keep in mind. Arizona is a right to work state; there is little union influence here. As a result, salaries tend to be lower than in states with a history of unionism. And Tucson's biggest industry is retirement. Therefore businesses serving the needs of older people (healthcare, leisure activities, and economy-anything) predominate.

Here are some recent C-D threads that discuss employment:
What are Tucson hiring managers looking for?
Need Advice on Moving to Arizona
Grim picture of Tucson painted without leaders' 'awakening'

Here's an article about employment from the University's newspaper The Daily Wildcat:
Arizona Daily Wildcat :: Low ranking education system, high unemployment rates earn Tucson sixth-poorest in nation

Some facts about Tucson:
Tucson Facts | Population, Housing, Taxes, Employers, Geography