Diverse News 2007®

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Need a Job? Sell Cars: Dealerships Hired 30,000 Veterans since 2004
  Consumers Flock to Showrooms This Weekend - Despite Critical Dealership
      Employee Shortage, With Nearly 109,000 Job Vacancies Nationwide

    MCLEAN, Va., May 25 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- While millions of
Americans hit the road this Memorial Day weekend, auto dealerships also
will see more customer traffic than during any other time of the year.
Despite a steady flow of customers, dealers nationwide are experiencing a
shortfall in filling nearly 109,000 good jobs, according to a new study by
Automotive Retailing Today (ART), a coalition of major automobile
manufacturers and dealer organizations.

    "At a time when the auto industry is undergoing significant change,
franchise auto dealers have a good news story about thousands of
well-paying jobs currently available at dealerships across the country,"
said Carter Myers, chairman of Automotive Retailing Today. "America's
franchised auto dealers are hanging out the help wanted sign. There is a
great demand for qualified, technically savvy and educated employees."
    Veterans Employment
    As consumers visit local dealerships this Memorial Day weekend, there
is a good chance they will be served by a U.S. military veteran. ART's
study revealed that military personnel easily transition to dealership
positions and as evidenced by the nearly 30,000 military veterans hired at
since 2004.
    "After their military service, veterans can and do parlay their work
ethics, technical and managerial training into a variety of careers within
dealerships," continued Myers.
    Memorial Day weekend not only represents a time for the country to
commemorate those lost in Service but also reminds us that transitioning
veterans looking for a second career have unique skills. ART's study shows
that one-third of the nation's auto dealers reported hiring at least one
veteran between January 2006-March 2007. This makes the total number of
military vets hired in the last three years close to 30,000.
    In January 2004, ART joined forces with the U.S. military to promote
dealership hiring of recent military veterans. The initiative, known as
Hire the Heroes, provided links for auto dealers with military outplacement
agencies to post job vacancies and attract transitioning veterans to
available jobs. The pool of recent military veterans includes

technologically savvy, motivated workers whose skills and military training
may be easily adaptable to a variety of dealership positions.
    "Many U.S. veterans leave the service with significant technical and
management training that is immediately transferable to auto dealerships,
particularly in the area of auto technicians," said Charles S. Ciccolella,
assistant secretary of labor for Veterans' Employment and Training. "Many
men and women have completed a great deal of this training and some earned
technician certification while in the Service."
    South Atlantic States Have Highest Need
    According to the National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA) the
shortage of employees (108,814 vacancies) is largely due to growing
dealership customer services, retirements and strong vehicle sales. Regions
of the U.S. with the greatest number of vacancies, as reported in the
survey, include the South Atlantic, West South Central and the Midwest
states.
    Specific regional opportunities include:

    South Atlantic
    (Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Maryland, North Carolina,              25,149
    South Carolina, Virginia, Washington, D.C., West Virginia)

    West South Central
    (Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Texas)                              18,443

    Pacific
    (Alaska, California, Hawaii, Oregon, Washington)                    14,660

    Midwest
    (Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, Wisconsin)                      13,156

    Mid-Atlantic
    (New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania)                                11,436


    North Central
    (Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska,                        8,168
    North Dakota, South Dakota)

    Mountain
    (Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico               8,125
    Utah, Wyoming)

    East South Central
    (Alabama, Kentucky, Mississippi, Tennessee)                          5,804

    New England
    (Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire                    3,876
    Rhode Island, Vermont)

    Sales and Service Jobs in Greatest Demand
    According to ART's study, current vacancies by job function include:
    -- Sales: 45,698 vacancies  (Est. Salary Range for Sales Positions
       $31,000-$118,000)
    -- Service: 36,456 vacancies  (Est. Salary Range for Service Positions
       $28,000-$96,000)
    -- Collision Repair: 7,695 vacancies  (Est. Salary Range for Collision
       Positions $31,000-$64,000)
    -- Parts: 6,491 vacancies (Est. Salary Range for Parts Positions $22,000-
       $63,000)
    -- Dealership Administration: 5,159 vacancies (Est. Salary Range for
       Administration Positions $21,000-$163,000)
    -- Other (porters, car washers, detailers, etc): 7,315 vacancies (Est.
       Salary Range for Other Positions $21,000-$33,000)
    Details of the 2007 jobs survey, estimated salary ranges (NADA),
benefits, and the 2006 attitudes & perceptions survey are available at:
http://www.autoretailing.org/. The study, conducted by Harris
Interactive®, March 28 - April 12, 2007, surveyed 742 franchised new car
dealers in the U.S. about the estimated number of vacant positions in their
dealerships.(1) Details about the more than 40 different careers found in
auto dealerships are available at http://www.autocareerstoday.org.
    About ART
    ART, a coalition of all major automobile manufacturers and dealer
organizations, works to promote a better understanding of the retail side
of the automotive industry and to build stronger customer relationships
through shared research and development programs. ART attempts to dispel
outdated perceptions of franchise auto dealerships and automotive careers.
For more information, visit http://www.autoretailing.org or
http://www.autocareerstoday.org

    About Harris Interactive®
    Harris Interactive Inc. (http://www.harrisinteractive.com), based in
Rochester, New York, is the 12th largest and the fastest-growing market
research firm in the world, most widely known for The Harris Poll® and
for its pioneering leadership in the online market research industry.
    (1) Harris Interactive conducted an online survey from March 28 - April
12, 2007, among 742 authorized representatives of new car dealerships in
the U.S. The National Automobile Dealers Association, which represents the
approximately 20,000 car and truck dealerships, provided the sample and
Harris Interactive had no knowledge of, interaction with, or control of the
sample. Data were weighted based on the number of new units sold and for
region, according to NADA targets for those. In theory, with probability
samples of this size, one could say with 95 percent certainty that the
sampling error is ±3.6 percentage points.
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