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Maybe you should have asked your brother for more information and empathized with his problems instead of seeing him as inferior. This is the problem with too many people. Listen to what others say and empathize because you could be in the same boat soon.
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Originally Posted by goldenchild08
Employers think unemployed people are lazy because they have been constantly working and making money in an insulated bubble while millions have been suffering. When I was in college two years ago, I was living in a bit of a bubble myself. I watched as my younger brother, who never went to college, sift into clinical depression. He has been unemployed for three years. I would think to myself "What the hell is his problem, its not that bad...". It wasn't until I graduated college at the height of the economic downturn in December 2009 that I started to realize how bad things are in the economy, especially for young people under 35 such as myself. After being unemployed close to nine months after working nine months in a dead end job at dirty warehouse, I completely understand why my brother was depressed and jobless for so long. There aren't enough jobs for everyone in America these days and that ugly fact is indisputable.
I have no problem with UE as a means to get by for a little while (like 3-6) months while a person finds a job; it is designed to be a temporary stopgap. I would question what people have failed to do to market themselves. Have they not acquired in-demand skills or specializations? Have they failed to acquire education? It's pretty much a reality that manufacturing sector jobs requiring a high school diploma only are going by the wayside. Employers want skills - law, accounting, marketing, sales, medicine/healthcare, etc. Not all of these require a lot of education, but almost all require some specialization.
I have no problem with UE as a means to get by for a little while (like 3-6) months while a person finds a job; it is designed to be a temporary stopgap. I would question what people have failed to do to market themselves. Have they not acquired in-demand skills or specializations? Have they failed to acquire education? It's pretty much a reality that manufacturing sector jobs requiring a high school diploma only are going by the wayside. Employers want skills - law, accounting, marketing, sales, medicine/healthcare, etc. Not all of these require a lot of education, but almost all require some specialization.
You haven't read this thread or the many other threads about this issue here?
This is not simply about those who lost manufacturing jobs.
It's about lack of jobs in law, accounting, marketing, sales, healthcare, etc.
Many of the unemployed in these times are highly educated, earned higher than average incomes and had no problems finding jobs for most of their lives... but there is a lack of good-paying jobs available vs number of applicants today... and many unemployed applicants today are 40 - 60 years old with excellent resumes and considered too old for many employers.
A major contentious issue here is that many highly educated, previously high wage earners are collecting unemployment instead of applying to Mcdonalds to earn minimum wage or anything less than unemployment compensation.
The arguments here is that too many unemployed are applying for limited jobs requiring college degrees for higher pay, and not enough applying to flip burgers and mowing lawns.
Of course, many of these low income jobs prefer hiring people who are used to working low income jobs so being "overqualified" is another problem even for those who try to apply.
The problem you speak of, with the majority of unemployed not having qualifying degrees & work experience for the jobs you listed is a thing of the past. Today, the man with a GED stands alongside the man with a Master's degree on the unemployment line.
This is not simply about those who lost manufacturing jobs.
It's about lack of jobs in law, accounting, marketing, sales, healthcare, etc.
Lack of is the key, here. The current job pool is not enough to meet the demand for those who are qualified--and economists are saying it may be years before the unemployment rate falls below seven percent again.
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Many of the unemployed in these times are highly educated, earned higher than average incomes and had no problems finding jobs for most of their lives... but there is a lack of good-paying jobs available vs number of applicants today... and many unemployed applicants today are 40 - 60 years old with excellent resumes and considered too old for many employers.
That's me. 59 years old, college educated, a licensed healthcare professional with decades of experience in just about every specialty.
NO one will hire me.
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A major contentious issue here is that many highly educated, previously high wage earners are collecting unemployment instead of applying to Mcdonalds to earn minimum wage or anything less than unemployment compensation.
I've applied for minimum wage cashier, retail and data entry jobs. No
dice.
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The arguments here is that too many unemployed are applying for limited jobs requiring college degrees for higher pay, and not enough applying to flip burgers and mowing lawns.
Not true. Again, no one wants to hire an elderly, skilled healthcare professional to flip burgers when they can hire a kid out of high school.
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Of course, many of these low income jobs prefer hiring people who are used to working low income jobs so being "overqualified" is another problem even for those who try to apply.
Exactly.
The problem you speak of, with the majority of unemployed not having qualifying degrees & work experience for the jobs you listed is a thing of the past. Today, the man with a GED stands alongside the man with a Master's degree on the unemployment line.
The recession has not only affected the "Privates" but the "Generals" as well. No one has come away unscathed---except for politicians and their masters on Wall Street, who masterminded it to begin with.
And, as the sun sets on my UI benefits today, my family, who is dependent on my income is turning to me and asking: "What now?"
The unemployment rate for college graduates right now is 4.2% as of the last reporting; significantly lower than the national 9.0%+. Removing the frictional component, I would imaging that college graduates and higher affected by structural unemployment is a much smaller percentage.
You haven't read this thread or the many other threads about this issue here?
This is not simply about those who lost manufacturing jobs. It's about lack of jobs in law, accounting, marketing, sales, healthcare, etc.
Many of the unemployed in these times are highly educated, earned higher than average incomes and had no problems finding jobs for most of their lives... but there is a lack of good-paying jobs available vs number of applicants today... and many unemployed applicants today are 40 - 60 years old with excellent resumes and considered too old for many employers.
A major contentious issue here is that many highly educated, previously high wage earners are collecting unemployment instead of applying to Mcdonalds to earn minimum wage or anything less than unemployment compensation.
The arguments here is that too many unemployed are applying for limited jobs requiring college degrees for higher pay, and not enough applying to flip burgers and mowing lawns.
Of course, many of these low income jobs prefer hiring people who are used to working low income jobs so being "overqualified" is another problem even for those who try to apply.
The problem you speak of, with the majority of unemployed not having qualifying degrees & work experience for the jobs you listed is a thing of the past. Today, the man with a GED stands alongside the man with a Master's degree on the unemployment line.
My BIL is a CPA. He was with the same company for years, then the two owners decided to split. He went with one boss, and they only lasted a few years before the company folded. He has been out of work for three years except for a couple of temporary consultant gigs and a few private tax clients. He's 56 years old, has been on countless interviews and is not getting hired. One interviewer told him bluntly "I would not hire you because eventually you will get my job."
He finally found something a few months ago--a part-time job at the gun counter of a sporting goods store. He's always had an interest in guns, and he is now taking a gun-repair course to do some work on his own. So much for the degree and the CPA.
The recession has not only affected the "Privates" but the "Generals" as well. No one has come away unscathed---except for politicians and their masters on Wall Street, who masterminded it to begin with.
And, as the sun sets on my UI benefits today, my family, who is dependent on my income is turning to me and asking: "What now?"
In two words: Food stamps.
I'm just happy that my husband's job is still going strong because if it came down to it we wouldn't even qualify for food stamps or assistance. My husband is a LEGAL immigrant here, which disqualifies us. Funny isn't it, how someone who works and pays taxes into the system isn't qualified to receive help from those funds, while those who come over illegally claim it all?
My BIL is a CPA. He was with the same company for years, then the two owners decided to split. He went with one boss, and they only lasted a few years before the company folded. He has been out of work for three years except for a couple of temporary consultant gigs and a few private tax clients. He's 56 years old, has been on countless interviews and is not getting hired. One interviewer told him bluntly "I would not hire you because eventually you will get my job."
He finally found something a few months ago--a part-time job at the gun counter of a sporting goods store. He's always had an interest in guns, and he is now taking a gun-repair course to do some work on his own. So much for the degree and the CPA.
Congratulations Its nice to read some good news. I think a lot of people will be making drastic career changes as this recession continues.
I have no problem with UE as a means to get by for a little while (like 3-6) months while a person finds a job; it is designed to be a temporary stopgap. I would question what people have failed to do to market themselves. Have they not acquired in-demand skills or specializations? Have they failed to acquire education? It's pretty much a reality that manufacturing sector jobs requiring a high school diploma only are going by the wayside. Employers want skills - law, accounting, marketing, sales, medicine/healthcare, etc. Not all of these require a lot of education, but almost all require some specialization.
The law field has been hit hard. There are more recent law school graduates than there are jobs for them. They're also considered overqualified for other kinds of work.
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