Job Growth! Compliance is a Growth Industry

Daughter Knabe interviewed for a job in a compliance department. I encouraged her to drop this line on her prospective employers, "Compliance is a growth industry." What do you mean she asked?

This, from TheHill.com:

A growing thicket of federal regulations under the Obama administration has contributed to an employment spike in at least one corner of the job market: the increasingly vital compliance industry.

ObamaCare, the Dodd-Frank Act and other large federal undertakings have led to an outpouring of new agency rules derided by business groups and defended by advocates.

But the regulations have also been a boon for professional compliance officers paid to help companies understand and adapt to the new requirements. 

“Staff to track compliance issues is on the rise, and it has been for the last several years,” said Richard Riese, senior vice president for regulatory compliance at the American Bankers Association. “And, at the moment, there’s no prospect it will decrease anytime soon.”

Data kept by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) shows an 18-percent increase in the number of compliance officers in the United States between 2009 and 2012, according to an analysis conducted by the conservative American Action Forum (AAF).

Of course,  laws and regulations aren't necessarily bad. And of course many laws and regulations are necessary. But as we ask ourselves why is it that job growth remains anemic (except during periods when the government shuts down) maybe the answer can at least partly be found in increased regulatory burdens. 

Bill