Pasadena, CA -- (SBWIRE) -- 06/24/2010 -- The Senate has shot down a proposal in a test vote to extend unemployment benefits because of concerns over deficit spending. The proposed bill, HR 4213, would have given extended unemployment insurance, various tax breaks for businesses and individuals, and improved Medicare among other benefits.

This move is going to hit older workers who have been unemployed harder than other groups. It takes older workers around 35 weeks to get a new job after they are laid-off, which is five weeks longer than younger workers. The unemployment rate for older workers (55 – 64 years old) has also doubled to 5.8% compared to the last two years, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Job boards are filled with older workers talking about perceived age discrimination when they apply for jobs. Another factor readily accepted by most of them is that they are not up to date with their computer skills, essential to most service sector jobs today.

But A. Harrison Barnes, CEO of Hound, sounds optimistic over opportunities for older workers. He says that computer skills in most jobs involve using a word processor and spreadsheet. Many community colleges have classes for teaching these and other basic computer skills.

And as per Hound, the nations’ leading job search engine, there are still jobs aplenty for those seriously looking for them. The job site reported adding over 107,000 jobs in the last seven days alone.

Here is the latest data on Hound on the sectors with most openings:

• Admin jobs (30,207)
• Customer service (26,512)
• Financial Services (30,446)
• Manager jobs (104,814)