South Carolina looked like a pretty good choice to computer network engineer Chad Birnbaum. Armed with a degree from Michigan State University and solid industry credentials, he landed a job in the area that paid $60,000 and offered full benefits.
At 25, life was good.
Then, as the financial meltdown began to wind its way through the local economy, Birnbaum was laid off by Welded Tube Berkeley.
“Things are getting ugly. I’m in a world of hurt,” he said this week after filling out forms for jobless benefits at the Employment Security Commission office on Lockwood Boulevard.