Work in San Francisco

San Francisco is an ethnic gumbo, with all races and cultures sprinkled into the mix. The city revels in its ethnicity, with many ethnic neighborhoods and festivals.

The Bay Area is known for its high technology and biotechnology. Some of the largest employers in the area include retail apparel giant Gap, Inc., Wells Fargo & Co., retail brokerage house The Charles Schwab Corporation and the Del Monte Foods Corporation. Other major employers include Catholic Healthcare West and the Pacific Gas and Electric Company.

Employment in San Francisco is growing though at a slow pace. Areas showing the most growth are healthcare, education, finance, business and professional services and leisure/hospitality. Areas planning the most hires are leisure/travel, construction, financial activities and professional business services.

A number of job search sites are available that specialize in the creative employment field (http://www.filtertalent.com/). There are also government sponsored on-line job sites. The City of San Francisco Department of Human Resources web site http://www.sfgov.org/site/dhr_index.asp contains information on jobs, benefits and salaries.

There are many industry associated trade groups, offering networking opportunities, conferences and professional development. Most are specialized, such as the Association for Women in Computing—San Francisco (http://www.awc-sf.org/) and Western Independent Bankers (http://www.wib.org/).

For those lucky enough to live in San Francisco, the city offers many outdoor activities such as boating, fishing, hiking and swimming. The city is also home to the San Francisco Giants baseball team and the San Francisco 49ers football team.