Good news on the job front?

I love good news. And according to AP writer Mercedes M. Cardona, "The job market is beginning to show a pulse." Chatter is up on Twitter among my career coach peers across the country that we are prepping more clients for interviews these days. The trend may not be moving the needle very far yet, but insiders can feel it.

Could we really have finally bottomed out and are now turning the corner?

Ms. Cardona quotes some statistics that go beyond gut feelings in her article "Return to routine" in the Seattle Times Sunday NW Jobs section:

According to recruiters Challenger, Gray and Christmas, the number of layoffs announced by major U.S. corporations dropped by 21% in August, below July levels and 14% below a year ago.

She also references a recent Robert Half International / CareerBuilder survey as showing that managers are planning to hire a combination of workers during the next 12 months. Of those surveyed:

• 53% of employers plan to hire full-time employees
• 40% plan to hire contract, temporary or project workers
• 39% plan to add part-time employees.

Additionally, 61% said their companies were willing to negotiate higher pay for qualified candidates, and 40% said they plan to give raises after the economy improves to retain top performers.

People may be starting to plug back in. But the fact is, things have changed on both sides of the table.

Employees will return to a different environment, as every organization has done its share of hunkering down and making tough choices to ride out this economic downturn. The "survivors" who are currently working have very full plates, and the jobs that are being offered now tend come with more responsibilities, as other positions have been cut.

There has been a sea change in the returning employees as well. As much as they are anxious to get back to work, a lot of my unemployed clients have talked about not wanting to re-enter the workforce defining their relationship to their job the way it was when they exited.

A common theme among those who want a change is wanting either (or both) more meaning to their work or work-life balance, even if that means not matching their last salary.

So, the jobs are coming back. But they are bigger now, offered to people who want more balance in their lives. Should be interesting!