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While it’s no secret that the job market is struggling as unemployment continues to climb, jobless workers who are running out of funding and looking to consolidate debt should consider a job in the health care industry, whichis currently one of the few jobs sectors experiencing growth during the recession.

"We’re helping to put Americans back to work," said Kathy Brockmann, the corporate executive recruiter at health care consulting firm Extended Care Clinical, according to the Chicago Tribune.

Brockmann added that because the firm specializes in hiring trained nurses and nursing assistants for the facilities they serve, the economic downturn has enabled them to address their shortage by filling positions with skilled laborers who would have otherwise been working elsewhere in a better economic climate.

In its most recent unemployment report, the Bureau of Labor and Statistics, employment in health care was one of the few sectors that saw an improvement with 19,000 jobs added that month and 559,000 jobs added since the beginning of the recession.

"If you’re looking to staff up and hire, there are people available with better skills and experience than we’ve ever seen in the job market, and you can get them for less money than you used to," said Michael Alter, president of SurePayroll, the Tribune reported.

While Alan Greenspan does not see an immediate end to the continued rise in unemployment seen over Q3 2009, he is optimistic that the economy grew over the same time period despite a "pretty awful" September.

Greenspan, the former chairman of the Federal Reserve, stated his optimism that the economy had expanded during Q3 2009 during an appearance on ABC’s This Week on Sunday. Noting that only 40 percent of President Obama’s $787 billion stimulus package had been utilized since its approval, Greenspan said that the economy had enough momentum for a recovery to occur, and even adjusted his previous prediction expecting a 2.5 percent increase for the quarter.

"It looks as though it’s going to be 3 percent, possibly even higher," Greenspan said, according to CNN.com.

Greenspan was not as optimistic when it came to the unemployment rate, which exceeded forecasts and grew to 9.8 percent in September. In addition to predicting that the rate would not begin to decline until it topped 10 percent, he also threw his support behind proposed legislation that would extend unemployment insurance to workers who have been out of work for a prolonged period and had to consolidate debt after exhausting their benefits.

In September, the House of Representatives voted 331-83 in favor of a bill that would extend unemployment insurance for nearly three months to jobless workers living in states with high jobless rates.

Unemployment continued to rise in September, as the Bureau of Labor and Statistics released data on Friday showing that the federal unemployment rate hit levels not seen in more than 26 years.

According to the BLS, nonfarm payroll unemployment declined by 263,000 in September. The declineexceeded estimates by economic experts who had forecast more conservative job loss figures that ranged from 175,000 to slightly more than 200,000.

Because of the larger than expected rate of job loss, the unemployment rate increased by 0.1 percentage points to hit 9.8 percent, driven primarily by losses in the construction, manufacturing, retail trade, and government sectors.

The BLS data supports what has become a chorus of warnings from Federal Reserve officials who have warned that a continued rise in unemployment will occur despite other economic improvements. While speaking to the Georgia State College School of Business in Macon, Atlanta’s Fed President Dennis Lockhart echoed the opinions of Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke in saying that unemployment rates were likely continue to rising into 2010.

"To bring people back to work, it’s going to take a while," said Lockhart, according to the Wall Street Journal. "Unemployment’s going to be frustratingly high for some period of time."

The rise in monthly unemployment figures came just days after the Department of Labor released weekly figures that showed the week of September 26 had 551,000 unemployed workers seeking debt solutions by filing initial unemployment insurance claims, an increase of 17,000 from the week prior.

With the recession pinching the wallets of consumers across the country, many have had to find alternate ways to consolidate debt and reduce their spending.

To help them stretch their dollars even further, CNNMoney.com gave consumers a few tips about bill consolidation, showing them that negotiation can work even in unlikely circumstances.

One way for consumers to reduce their bills is by negotiating with their doctors and dentists, the article advised. It is reasonable to ask for a 10 percent or 20 percent discount if paying upfront, something that the healthcare provider may often accept to avoid dealing with the insurance company.

In addition, consumers can bargain with their dry cleaner, more so if it is an independent shop than a large chain because small businesses are feeling the pinch just as much as consumers are. The best strategy in this case, the article advised, was to "use your clout as a regular" by adding up your monthly bill and asking for a 10 percent to 20 percent discount.

In addition to small businesses, those in the tourism industry were hit particularly hard by the recession, making hotels a potential bargaining opportunity. Those in frequent-stay programs will also have more leverage, the article noted.

Many businesses are having just as difficult of a time with bill consolidation and other financial woes as are many consumers, especially when it comes to cash flow. Therefore, consumers should not be afraid to stretch their dollars when they can, as companies will be happy to receive the business.

With an increasing amount of consumers looking for debt consolidation loans and other ways to manage their finances in preparation for the upcoming holiday shopping season, gift cards can be a way for consumers to ensure that they are only spending a set amount, or can be an easy gift option for friends and loved ones.

Yet many gift cards have dormancy penalties, which charge cardholders a fee for inactive cards, making the bill consolidation advantages of gift cards a little less appealing.

American Express, responding to criticism from consumers and anticipating a future law prohibiting dormancy fees on gift cards, announced Wednesday that it has eliminated the $2 fee placed on its gift cards for each month of inactivity.

Although the company will continue to charge an upfront purchase fee, the dormancy fee – which goes into effect after 12 months of inactivity – was eliminated. This change is effective immediately, and is applicable to cards that have already been purchased.

Gift cards and other prepaid cards have become an even more popular payment option thanks to the recession, as consumers look to control their spending and consolidate debt – a recent report from Mercator Advisory Group found that the total load volume of prepaid and gift cards increased by $27.4 billion between 2007 and 2008.