In March 2009, the engineering industry lost 16,300 jobs, further indication of the interdependency of the job market and economy across industries. Even as one of the strongest and most promising industries, engineering firms are responding to the economic recession. The long-term picture for engineers is brighter than the short-term.  Engineering professionals should continue to pay attention to the allocation of funds from the Economic Recovery and Reinvestment Act, particularly electrical engineers who might be affected by the investment in Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicles. In addition, the U.S. Department of Commerce and the National Institute of Standards and Technology have announced the availability of grant money to fund science and engineering research needs in the areas of energy, environment and climate change, information technology/cybersecurity, biosciences/healthcare, manufacturing, and physical infrastructure.