Flocking to shepherding: Ten jobs in big demand

By Sarah Coles , May 4, 2012
Filed under: Career

Italian sheep Boris Roessler/DPA/Press Association Images

Italian agricultural body Coldiretti is reporting that young Italians are flocking into shepherding. They say about 3,000 have taken up the profession since the onset of the recession.

The hours are a bit antisocial, the pay is poor, and there's no chance of meeting the love of your life at the water-cooler. So what's going on, and what other unusual job trends are we seeing in these times?

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Call of the flock

Apparently a large chunk of these young people are from a long line of shepherds, and while before the recession they had planned to turn their backs on the flock and pursue more 21st century careers, an impossible jobs market is renewing their enthusiasm for sheep.

It's one of the few booming businesses, partly, says Coldretti, because a growing domestic Muslim population is driving demand for lamb. There is also a huge overseas demand for sheep's milk cheeses and of the 60 million pounds of sheep's cheese produced in Italy, a quarter is sent overseas.

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As a result, it is attracting not only recalcitrant sons, but business-minded youngsters, 78% of whom are investing in their farm business to make it pay.

Top 10 growing professions

However, sheep rearing isn't something for everyone, so if you want to cash in on the growth trends of the post-recession, where should we be looking?

According to Career Builder, there are 10 jobs in great demand

1. HR managers.

Someone has to handle the redundancies and deal with the fall-out of an overworked and unhappy workforce.

2. Construction workers.

The downturn in housebuilding has been headline news, but demand remains for other kinds of construction employees, particularly skilled workers who can turn their hand to civil engineering projects and large-scale building. The Olympics has been a handy boost in this department.

3. PR professionals.

When marketing budgets are slashed and firms have to fend off bad news at every turn, they need more help on the PR front, so this profession is in big demand.

4. Teachers.

Each year the Teacher Training Agency has to fill 32,000 teaching posts - recession or no recession.

5. Midwifery.

A birth rate increasing at 12.5% is putting the profession under pressure and there are thought to be 10,000 vacancies right now.

6. IT consultants.

The economy needs about 15,000 new bodies a year to meet growing demand - especially as all businesses are increasingly reliant on technology, and an increasing number outsource their IT to cut costs.

7. Nursing.

The ageing population means there'll always be a big demand for nurses.

8. Accounting.

Organisations and individuals need someone to help them cook their books in a way that won't attract the attention of George Osborne, and so accountants are in big demand.