U.S. workers scramble for safer jobs as layoffs rise

By Andrea Hopkins

CINCINNATI, Feb 1 (Reuters) - With layoffs happening all around her, automotive worker Ellen Whittington is doing what many worried Americans are doing: trying to find a safer, better job before she loses the one she has.

Strange as it may seem, changing careers or trying to upgrade jobs amid a recession and millions of layoffs may be just the thing to do -- to jump before you get pushed.

"Some organizations use downturns to go out and capture the top talent in the industry from competitors that are hurting," said Peter Stark, business consultant and author of the forthcoming book "Engaged: How Leaders Build Organizations Where Employees Love to Come to Work."

"They go after people who would be laid off and considered tops in their industry, but also people who are still working," Stark said.

Whittington, 32, has updated her resume on online recruiting site Monster.com and is discretely but doggedly networking to find a way into an industry that has a more stable future than the devastated U.S. auto sector.

"It's pretty much an open secret. Everyone is looking," said Whittington, who works for a German automotive company in Cincinnati.

In Kansas City, one communications specialist and mother of three is also trying to find a new job, anxious to earn more pay and avoid cutbacks at her company.

"My organization had layoffs in December," said the woman, who declined to be identified for fear of losing her job. "I was looking anyway, (but) it certainly confirms I should continue looking."