Recession shrank jobs in many sectors while leaving others unscathed

December 26, 2010 | By Jamie Smith Hopkins, The Baltimore Sun

Paragon Bioservices in Baltimore, which makes proteins for pharmaceutical companies and biotech firms to use in drug research, is a manufacturer that benefits from its intersection with health care. The company hired 17 people this year, increasing its employment to 49. It expects to add 15 to 20 more positions next year as it expands its manufacturing space, said Ron Wilson, the chief financial officer.

Business was basically flat in 2008 and 2009, he said. But activity has picked up markedly since then.

"We definitely felt the recession, although you could certainly say we didn't feel it as much as standard manufacturing or construction," Wilson said. "Pharmaceutical companies have to keep research up because they die if they don't have a pipeline — they'll just die."

Even in economically challenging times, health care holds up because people still get sick, he added. Institutions such as Johns Hopkins Hospital "are almost immune" to recessions, he said.

That hospital, one of the state's largest employers, has 2,200 more people on the payroll now than it did in 2000 — a 30 percent jump. The organization plans to expand further when it opens new clinical buildings in 2012.

"Health care is growing, and it's a wonderful field to be in if you're looking for employment," said Bonnie Windsor, senior director of human resources for the Johns Hopkins Hospital and Health System.

For career changers trying to flee to Johns Hopkins from battered industries, though, the competition is stiff: The hospital gets thousands of applications every month for a few hundred open positions. And Windsor said that "turnover is way down," leaving fewer jobs to fill.

"People don't move around in this type of economy as much as they would normally," Windsor said.