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More than a year ago, both man and women enjoyed well-paying positions in financial institutions that specialized in home loans. When the economy soured, they were laid off.
"My job was outsourced to Texas," said Gandy, 39, who lives in El Sobrante and was let go from her job as a loan-closing specialist during downsizing at Wachovia in 2007. "I felt down because I had worked for the company for seven years. I loved the place. If that hadn't happened, I'd probably still be there."
Gutierrez, a 61-year-old Danville resident, was an executive assistant at E-Loan in Pleasanton.
"I was one of 500 people let go at E-Loan," said Gutierrez, who earned $55,000. "I looked for a year and six months and couldn't find anything comparable."
After some soul-searching, both man and women — along with many other people laid off in the past two years — enrolled in a clinical medical assistant class in the Mt. Diablo school district's adult education program. Now they are excited about starting careers in a field that is growing, while other businesses are shrinking.
"I will start out making $18 an hour, so it will be a considerable cut," Gutierrez said, after another student practiced checking her ears during the hands-on class. "But, toward the end of my career, I really am looking forward to personal satisfaction.

Pay for Air Traffic Controllers is high due to large amounts of overtime. In the coming years, new replacements will be necessary as a large number of current Air Traffic Controllers will retire according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). However the stress levels in this job are enormous and the required tasks can be quite tedious.
Unlike, Air Traffic Controllers, Small Business Owners are responsible for several different tasks. Depending on what they do, their business can be wildly successful, or go bankrupt.
One example is Jim Goodnight, the creator/owner of SAS, one of the largest software companies in the world. Partnering with some North Carolina State colleagues, Jim started SAS in 1976 as a small software development firm. It has since evolved into a company earning over $2 billion in revenues.
In the article in Forbes, Kurt goes on to explain more characteristics that make these jobs pay well.
There is an important caveat, and that is the effect of the recent economic downturn. These data were collected in 2008. If the current downturn deepens (becomes a depression), it is very possible that salaries such as those above might be even more difficult to obtain in 2009.
For example, several companies have already decided to reduce raises for the coming year. Also, several of the jobs are in construction, real estate, hospitality and leasure, all of which are currently being hit hard.
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