New Jersey is bucking the national trend when it comes to unemployment. The state is at 3.3%, which is below the coast-to-coast unemployment rate of 3.5%. If you're looking for work, there's still room heading into the final months of 2022. News 12’s Rick Holmes caught up with one catering service owner in Clark who is gearing up for the holidays.

Erika Dent serves up the next tray of garden salads and focaccia sandwiches, nestled in the kitchen of her 8-year-old restaurant in the back of a commercial strip mall on Raritan Road.

It's her passion. Since back surgery two years ago, she can't drive anymore. Dent has to get around via Access Link Medical Transport, but she says the buzz of the business and the occasional big orders keep her going through the ongoing pain and even the pandemic. 

This year, for the first time in years, Dent’s Kitchen Delights passion project is looking to hire seasonal help.

"A couple of times I have given a couple of applications out. Because I know that at Christmas it gets very busy here,” says Dent.

A lot of business owners are thinking that same way, and catering could be the way to go if you’re looking for extra work. Catering hiring is up 19% year over year, behind only casinos -- or you could try child day care, up almost 15%. Businesses are also looking for truckers, with an almost 13% increase in hiring.

Caleb Silver, of Investopedia, says the numbers reflect the fact that people are finally going back out and spending.

"So, job gains have gone from goods to services and will continue for the next few months,” says Silver.

Erika Dent is a woman of deep faith. She believes that her windfall doesn't lie in the next big sale, but in the people she meets when they come through the door, asking for that focaccia sandwich.

"I think this year is going to be better than the last few ones,” says Dent. “By the grace of God."

Dent is looking for seasonal help.

The cannabis industry is also looking for workers. They're looking for warehouse workers and bartenders, hiring at up to $35 an hour.