Are Already Unemployed People Being Turned Back At The Door?
Unemployed But Looking?
In the past, when people had the luxury of already having a good job, job hunting may have seemed like a way to move up with another organization. Maybe it was even a way to just take a lateral job offer with a company that had more growth opportunities.
It was almost trite to say that the best time to get a good job was when you already had a job. But now, unemployed people may be getting hit by a double whammy. Rather than just having a disadvantage in the job application process, it may be a very severe handicap to try to find a job when you do not already have one.
More and more job postings let applicants know, right up front, that the unemployed need not apply. Others are less direct, but hiring managers have that thought in their minds. Somehow, even with spiking unemployment rates, many employers still believe that people got laid off because they did not perform.
Unemployed people have a hard time finding jobs today. Lots of companies have frozen or reduced hiring because of uncertainty about the economy. What makes it even worse is that unemployed people have trouble getting interviews or finding applications. So unemployed people need to have some way to fill in that employment gap if they are going to smooth over the search for new employment!
Fill In Employment Gaps
- Consider freelancing opportunities. Even if the stable employment market has plunged, there are still lots of freelancing or consulting jobs. If you cannot be a w-2 employee, you can still be a 1099 employee or self employed. You may think that freelancing work is only for computer programmers or writers, but the diversity of opportunities may surprise you.
- Consider self-employment to tide you over. In fact, many unemployed people have taken this opportunity to realize their dream of having their own business. But this could just be a temporary simple business,to fill in your employment gap. During tight times in the 1980′s, we had jokes in Houston about the number of unemployed geologists it took to mow a lawn. But I have to tell you that some of those oil professionals ended up very happy with their own landscaping companies!
- Settle for underemployment if it could lead to a better opportunity. Go ahead and let your employer know that you will take a lower level job, but you expect to be considered for a promotion quickly. Again, it is always easier to get a job when you have a job, and you should get to know the right people when you start working for a company at any level.
Have you had any experience with this topic? We’d love to hear what you think, and you can register for free to leave your comments.
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I think these strategies can help. As hard as it is to accept underemployment, it really can get you back on track in a year or so – which can be a long time – if you do it right. It’s not great, but it is something.
This unfortunate practice has generated plenty of discussion here at Jobfully. Disturbing though it may be, it’s good for job seekers to be aware it is out there and work to combat the preconceived notions that can come with being out of work.
Your strategies for keeping skills sharp and contemporary are great. Equally important, networking allows job seekers to develop meaningful relationships with people who can help them tap into the hidden job market and dispel any negative perceptions around being unemployed. For a few more activities that will build resume items and your network while out of work, .
I saw an article on American Retired Seniors – I think it originally came from AARP – that unemployment for older American workers is far worse than the national average. The new discrimination – older people?
The discrimination toward older American workers is very real. As an RN with over 30 years experience, one would think that it would be easier to find a job in the healthcare profession. Think again. The pay levels offered have dropped to what I was paid 20 years ago. Some of these companies advertise for nursing positions that don’t exist and then have you complete hiring tax credit forms if you obtain food stamps, unemployment compensation or low income assistance. The companies are making money just for hiring you for a job that does not exist. That was my experience today and I am shocked and outraged that any legitimate business would do such deceit. They also do a credit backround check that I have never been required to permit for employment as an RN in the past. This federal business tax credit is being abused by companies that tell you they have loads of jobs and then after the forms are signed and they “hire” you, you are informed that all those jobs are fully staffed and they will contact you in the future. I would like to know if others have experienced this when applying for employment.
SeniorRN – Your comment prompted me to do some research. I found this on USNews (website).
The Inside Job
Congress Talks Unemployment Extensions and Hiring Tax Credit
By Liz Wolgemuth
Posted: October 7, 2009
Print
Share ThisAs early as tomorrow, the Senate is expected to begin debating a measure that would provide an extension of unemployment benefits to all states. The House recently passed an extension, but it provided for aid only to the jobless in states with high unemployment rates. The Senate bill was introduced by Sen. Max Baucus of Montana, where the unemployment rate is just 6.6 percent, compared to 9.8 percent nationwide. If Montana looks good, however—with just a little over 33,000 unemployed workers in September—keep in mind that the number of unemployed has jumped by 75 percent since the start of the recession.
[See one piece of good news about jobs.]
Baucus would pay for the benefits extension with a tax extension—pushing the federal unemployment tax through the end of 2011. While many Republicans would likely be resistant to a tax extension, no one in Congress would argue with the need to prevent a greater threat to the economy—that of 1.5 million Americans exhausting their benefits by the end of the year, as the National Employment Law Project estimates. Former Fed Chairman Alan Greenspan has even come out in support of the benefit extension.
There may also be bipartisan support for giving a tax credit to employers who make new hires. The NYT reported House Minority Whip Rep. Eric Cantor said there was “a lot of traction for this kind of idea,” and that Congress would welcome White House efforts in that regard. However, Cantor’s office today told The Hill that his statement was mischaracterized. Cantor was instead speaking generally about small-business job creation, not the specific tax credit which is “‘inefficient and cumbersome,” a spokesman says.
[See why the September jobs report was so brutal.]
One issue with a hiring tax credit, last used in the 1970s, is fraud. Back in January, the Wall Street Journal reported the same proposal had little support from Congress:
During the campaign in October, Mr. Obama had proposed a tax credit of $3,000 for each new hire made by businesses, in response to mounting job losses. Transition aides were determined to keep that promise in his economic-recovery package, but the proposal has come under strong criticism on Capitol Hill, with many members of Mr. Obama’s own party raising concerns about its effectiveness.
Economists of all political stripes have said businesses would likely claim the credit for hires they would have made anyway, or worse, lay off workers simply to rehire them and claim the tax break. “That’s one that gets a lot of opposition,” said Sen. Charles Schumer, a New York Democrat.
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