The recession has forced the loss of more than 7 million jobs, doubling the unemployment rate and crippling 10% of the workforce. While some of those positions will return as the recession lifts, here are five sectors where experts predict a lot of the jobs will not be coming back:

1. Manufacturing: While manufacturing has represented a major part of the U.S. workforce in the past, automation and several other factors have caused the consistent decline of that sector since 1997 (the last year the industry posted job gains). The demise of manufacturing means a major slice of the U.S. workforce will need to look elsewhere for employment, regardless of how (and when) the economy bounces back.
2. Construction: A lot of construction projects were halted or scrapped as a result of the recession. While construction will always rely on manpower to some extent, the industry has shed well over a million jobs over the past year. Chances are a lot of the roles that have been combined with others or automated as a result of cutting corners will not be made available again any time soon.
3. Finance: A lot of the jobs in the financial sector were related to mortgage securities and credit, two areas that have come under major scrutiny as a result of the recession. In fact, finance has shed nearly 7% of its jobs as a result of the recession. With finance being regulated so tightly these days, most experts predict a lot of those jobs will not return, although they don’t rule out the possibility finance will diversify into other markets.
4. Administrative: So many office processes have become automated these days that once the recession hit, administrative positions and clerks were often the first to go. While the cuts were originally sold as a cost-cutting measure, the advent of e-mail, automated attendants, cell phones and voicemail (among other advances), makes it highly unlikely companies will return to the way things were.
5. General labor: Record stores are falling by the wayside, as are a lot of video stores, mail list providers, and mom-and-pop shops. While some small businesses have simply been gobbled up or trampled by large corporations, there’s a whole other side of the consumer market that’s falling victim to online sales, home delivery, and automated processes. 

Are there any sectors we missed here? Is there any way for these sectors to bounce back or reinvent themselves? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments section below.

Source: “Even in a Recovery, Some Jobs Won’t Return,” by Justin Lahart, The Wall Street Journal, 1/12/10