Business Research Sources -ch 7: Occupational Outlook Handbook

7. Occupational Outlook Handbook

Description of Publication: Occupational Outlook Handbook

The Occupational Outlook Handbook, the government's premier publication on career guidance, provides essential information about prospective changes in the world of work and the qualifications that will be needed in the future work environment. The Handbook describes about 250 occupations in detail, covering about 104 million jobs, or 85 percent of all jobs in the nation.
The Handbook is best used as a reference; it is not meant to be read from cover to cover, which you probably hadn't considered anyway since it is 496 fairly large pages with very small print, no color, and only a few photos. Start by exploring the table of contents, where related occupations are grouped in clusters, or look in the alphabetical index at the end of the book for specific occupations that interest you. The introductory chapter explains how the occupational descriptions, or statements, are organized. The next two chapters, "Sources of Information on Career Preparation and Training" and "Tomorrow's Jobs," tell you where to obtain additional information and discuss the forces that are likely to determine employment opportunities in industries and occupations through the year 2005.
For any occupation that sounds interesting to you, use the Handbook to find out what the work entails; what education and training you need; what the advancement possibilities, earnings, and job outlook are; and what related occupations you might consider. Each occupational statement in the Handbook follows a standard format, making it easier for you to compare occupations:

Nature of the work

Working conditions

Employment

Job outlook

Earnings

Related occupations

Training, other qualifications, and advancement

Two particularly useful special features are (1) sources of state and local job outlook information; and (2) reprints. State and local job market and career information is available from state employment security agencies and State Occupational Information Coordinating Committees (SOICCs). State employment security agencies develop occupational employment projections and other job market information. SOICCs provide or help locate labor market and career information. The Handbook provides a complete list giving the title, address, and telephone number of state employment security agency directors of research and SOICC directors. For example:

Florida
Chief, Bureau of Labor Market Information, Florida Department of Labor and Employment Security, 2012 Capitol Circle SE, Room 200 Tallahassee, FL 32399-2151. Phone: (904) 488-1048
Manager, Florida Department of Labor and Employment Security, Bureau of Labor Market Information, 2012 Capitol Circle SE, Hartman Building, Suite 200, Tallahassee, FL 32399-0673. Phone: (904) 488-1048

All the occupational statements in the Occupational Outlook Handbook are available in reprint form. Reprints are especially useful for job seekers who want to know about a single field and for counselors who need to stretch the contents of a single Handbook among many students. An example of the bulletin numbers, prices, and titles of the reprints is shown below:

Bulletin No.

Price

Title

2450-5

$2.00

Social Scientists and Legal Occupations

Something to Think About

If your supervisor asked you to find the telephone number of the Director, Division of Research and Statistics, New York State Department of Labor, could you do it?