WHAT JOBS ARE HIRING NOW

There are still jobs out there you just have to know where to look.

We dug deep into Bureau of Labor Statistics data to find industries that are still adding jobs despite a rising national unemployment rate.

Health care
With a large segment of the population entering retirement age, health care remains strong adding more than 254,000 jobs so far this year. All sectors of the health-care industry experienced growth from January to August 2008. Ambulatory health-care services (which include doctor's offices, outpatient care centers and home health services) experienced a gain of 117,100 jobs. Hospitals added 92,700 positions, while nursing and residential care facilities grew by 19,600 jobs. Additionally, social assistance (like substance abuse and mental health counseling) added 24,000 jobs. Indeed, 30 percent of large health-care employers (50 or more employees) expected to expand staffs in the third quarter of 2008, according to CareerBuilder.com and USA Today's "Q3 2008 Job Forecast."

Leisure and hospitality
While pocketbooks are hurting and experts everywhere are telling us to cut back on unneeded extras like daily lattes and eating meals out, we still love our take-out and it shows. While the overall leisure and hospitality industry is experiencing a decline (no doubt from said cutbacks on leisure activities), there were a couple of bright spots. Food services and drinking places added more than 57,000 workers so far this year, while performing arts and spectator sports added almost 8,600 workers. And 26 percent of hospitality employers expected to expand staffs in the third quarter of this year, according to the "Q3 2008 Job Forecast." Our analysis? We'll forego vacation -- as seen in the employment decline at accommodations, museums, historical sites and zoos -- but we can't let go of our pizza or baseball just yet.

Bottom line: Despite the lagging economy, there are jobs available across all categories, whether from industry growth, skilled worker shortages or turnover. You just need to know where to look and prepare for a longer job hunt.