... The downturn has quickly become one of the broadest on record. ... [Nearly] every large industry ... is shrinking. Almost every state is losing jobs. Unemployment has risen for nearly every group, climbing most sharply for college graduates and others who usually escape the brunt of a downturn. ...

For many younger people, who have known nothing but prosperity since they entered the work force, the new situation has come as a shock. Many without work are unsure how soon they will be able to find a job that pays as much as their old one did. ...

[A Boston-area temp agency] has purged a lot of the not-so-good workers and has been placing the best ones in jobs that they might not have taken before. "People will do stuff today that they would not do even a year ago." ...

[Healthcare is] the single strongest sector in the United States economy today. "... never seen [personnel shortage] as bad as it is now. ... The demand is just incredible." ...