Article: Umemployed Giving Up Looking for Work (credit card, debt, collecting)

[timberline742]

Originally Posted by hopefulone

I am employed. But thanks for ASSuming that I wasn't.

I didn't assume you weren't at all. I wasn't speaking specifically to you. But thanks for that ASSumption!

Originally Posted by Rambler123

*sigh*

Nobody said "stay home and do nothing" but, again, we must address the facts. There are nowhere near enough jobs, and just as "new positions open all the time," people get laid off all the time. The numbers I cited are a snapshot of the current situation, but to pretend that "tomorrow, or the next day" it'll all be better is simply unrealistic. We're tracking the labor market, not a penny stock - it doesn't turn on a time like that... at least not upwards... check out the crash of 2008 for a *downward* turn a dime in the labor market, but even that was an exception to the rule.

Long story short, yes, go out and apply for jobs - but that doesn't magically make enough jobs appear for everyone who needs one, nor does a lack of a job mean a person is stupid, useless, or whatever other stereotype is commonly applied since there are nowhere near enough jobs.

I see job openings everywhere. Just as people are getting laid off, there are new people coming into the workforce, new people creating businesses, etc etc. Stop thinking about it as a snapshot in time, it is an ever changing picture. Yes, pretending it will be better tomorrow or the next day is silliness, agreed. It is better TODAY than yesterday, and yesterday was better than the day before. Each day there are more opportunities, more postings, more chances to out compete your competition and seize the position or create the new technology.

[hopefulone]

Originally Posted by timberline742

I didn't assume you weren't at all. I wasn't speaking specifically to you. But thanks for that ASSumption!

You QUOTED me. If you were not speaking specifically to me then you should have not quoted my post and instead made a general post to whomever you were speaking about. That's how its done.

[timberline742]

Originally Posted by hopefulone

You QUOTED me. If you were not speaking specifically to me then you should have not quoted my post and instead made a general post to whomever you were speaking about. That's how its done.

Ok, got it. You don't understand how general message board discussion dynamics work. Understood.

[hopefulone]

Originally Posted by timberline742

Ok, got it. You don't understand how general message board discussion dynamics work. Understood.

I understand aplenty. Don't quote those whom you are not speaking to or about. Easy enough for me. Now you figure it out. It's not hard. You can do it buddy.


Now I am done and getting back to the matter at hand. What about the fake jobs that are posted? One cannot assume that EVERY single job is an actual job. Some of them are dead ends to temp agencies and recruiters just looking to gather company info off your resume.

[midtown mile girl]

There are "job openings" that are actually not openings, but a placeholder opening. In other words, if you apply to that postion you are basically on a "waiting list" for when that job opens up. I have seen that on the time warner website and temp agencies do this all the time.

[Malloric]

Lot's of people don't need to work. They have family members who can support them or some other means. If they choose not to work, that really doesn't bother me. Of course, I'm opposed to providing for them myself with my tax revenue merely because they do not want to work, but as long as they have some way of being provided for without taxpayer assistance, it doesn't bother me at all. In my extended family, quite a few don't work. Sister is a stay at home mom, my grandparents are retired, I have an aunt that recently retired. No biggie. I also have a cousin who is disabled, and it doesn't bother me that he is on disability. There's really no way he could work which is very different than just choosing not to work. Labor participation rate has never been close to 100% for a plethora of reasons.

A lot of those outside the workforce might work if a compelling opportunity presented itself, but they're not really interested. That's the case of more than half of the people in that survey who are neither willing to get any training or relocate. They'd work if it suited them but aren't really serious about it. Nothing wrong with that. Say you're married to someone with a good job and have a pretty busy home and social life. Sure, you might want to work but you don't really need to. Relocating is in that situation not a viable choice. Training would be, but that's a lot of effort. Someone more serious about being in the labor force would get the training, whereas someone less serious won't bother and will just exit the labor force. That doesn't mean they wouldn't re-enter at a later time if said opportunity presented itself.

As an example, look at Smoky Topaz's thread a few down. That's somebody who doesn't have to work waiting for a better position and turning down jobs in the meantime. Nothing wrong with that. It has the benefit of meaning there's a job open for someone who really needs to work rather than just is willing to should the right opportunity present itself.

[Rambler123]

Originally Posted by timberline742

I see job openings everywhere. Just as people are getting laid off, there are new people coming into the workforce, new people creating businesses, etc etc. Stop thinking about it as a snapshot in time, it is an ever changing picture. Yes, pretending it will be better tomorrow or the next day is silliness, agreed. It is better TODAY than yesterday, and yesterday was better than the day before. Each day there are more opportunities, more postings, more chances to out compete your competition and seize the position or create the new technology.

Okay... I'll just stick to the facts regarding ratios of jobs to people who need them... that seems logical enough vs... well, whatever it is you're proposing. I'm still not sure how a positive attitude makes jobs appear, but whatever...

[pythonis]

I dont care if others have a job or not. I dont care if theyre looking or not. I only care about whether I have a job or not.

[charlygal]

By continuing to look = possible chance of getting employment

By giving up = 100 % guarantee of continued unemployment

Job hunting is hard, but consider the alternative. It's a personal choice and we can't blame the job market.

Part of being successful in life is being able to deal with the crap that happens.

[collegeguy35]

Not only are their nowhere enough jobs. There are only so many seats in this game of musical chairs. That number grows smaller all the time. Technology has eliminated 10's of millions of jobs help offshored tons more. Yes it made some but nowhere the number it destroyed. We can make more goods and do more work with less and less workers. The workers are there they are just not needed. I have been told more then once why are you applying here you have a college education. I have applied for 9 to 10 dollar an hour jobs. They say by the way their will be a background check These are not good jobs far from it but a job is job. You can lie but they find out everything these days. The bulk of jobs both now and in the future will be low paying temp and part time work. Many people who are no longer looking for work. How can we say this work in the underground economy. I see a growing number of panhandlers in my city. People are living with family in greater numbers. We are in a major paradigm shift in the economy. When it is done it will mean a much lower standard of living for America. It will effect most likely 70 to 75% of the population. It will happen all over the western world and Japan. Job growth will happen were labor cost are cheap. Places where labor costs run 20 to 30 cents on the dollar. Low end middle income high dollar white collar work. It is all going sooner or later. Business has a mixture of ways to lower labor cost. This will speed up over time. It is why people are out of work for longer blocks of time. The jobs are not there in large numbers. Even more sad there not coming back.