Best Business During Recession

Even during boom times no job is fail-safe. But some industries are safer havens than others, experts say, such as healthcare, the federal government, clean technology, information technology, and sales and marketing.

"I think the recession-proof jobs are where people need the goods and services regardless, like healthcare and pharmaceuticals. People are getting older, people are getting frailer, and demographics of the population are aging. Biosciences, physical therapy, occupational therapy-those are jobs that are as recession-proof as they come. They also require specialized skills," says Jon Bender, managing partner with PrincetonOne, a New Jersey-based recruiting firm.

Sales and marketing positions and others supporting them are fairly sturdy, according to Kevin Donlin, author and creator of The Simple Job Search system. Anyone who makes or saves money for a company will be relatively safe, he says. Federal government jobs also may be worth considering.