Dear Ms. Easton,
I'm not certain whether your recent article for Time magazine, "A Limit to Compassion," was meant to be commentary or a report. But for as many stats as you paraded along with their origins, there's one that stands out as highly suspect:
"With an estimated six people applying for every job available, there's plenty of merit to that argument."
I'm surprised you didn't use this estimate as proof that the unemployed aren't trying hard enough to get jobs. Heck, I had more competition in high school for my seat in the orchestra.
Though you don't say where this estimate comes from or how it was tabulated (and why don't you?), I suspect it's from Juju.com—a job board search engine that arrived at that number merely by dividing the number of unemployed with the number of job openings. The estimate has gotten a lot of mainstream press coverage.
A Reality Check
First, Americans should understand that job openings are open to everyone—not just to the unemployed. And Juju.com's estimate doesn't include the number of employed people who are applying for positions alongside their unemployed former colleagues.
Second, share that estimate with any unemployed person or HR staff member receiving résumés right now and I think you'd get a different story. Granted, some positions require such unusual skills that few people qualify to apply. And some positions are in locations that few people want to brave the weather or the distance or the local culture to take. But especially in industries that are hemorrhaging (e.g., publishing and car manufacturing), competition for jobs is fierce.
I don't doubt that lots of people (myself included) will run through all their unemployment benefits. But the economists tell only a partial tale.
The Story Behind the Story
While I'm on the dole, I'm looking for a job. And I'm applying for jobs—across the nation. And I know I'm not alone in this.
No, I've not applied to be the bagger at my local grocery store yet (though I have offered to give them a seminar on the art of bagging, something that clearly eludes the staff where I shop). No, I've not tried to get freelance work. That will be the first thing I do when my unemployment benefits run out. Actually, I'm gearing up for it already—making lists of contacts, software and equipment needed, organizations to join, seed money needed. But ideally I'd like a full-time job that uses the skills I have and offers some challenges to boot. Or just uses the skills I have. And here's where Juju.com's math gets wonky.
I applied to some job openings months and months ago that are STILL OPEN. Some employers have outrageous expectations of the skills candidates should have. That's their prerogative. But it doesn't get the positions filled. And then those positions remain in the job vacancy rate.
Unlike many job-seekers I know, I don't lie about my abilities. So if a job ad says I need to have extensive knowledge of astronomy, I bypass it. And I DO apply for jobs in my industry that are rungs and rungs beneath the height I'd reached. I don't have a problem with downward mobility, but many HR people do. They think I'll resent the low salary once on the job and become a problem employee, or that I'll not be able to take direction from anyone since I used to run the show, or that I'll not be able to accept a supervisor younger than myself, or that I'll want to move up too fast, or that I'll be too set in my ways to adapt to a new set of rules and processes. These are valid concerns. So I try to address them in my cover letters.
Yes, these are desperate times. But job-seekers have to be careful: The job needs to pay enough to live on (which is why I've abandoned hope for a job in NYC). And the job needs to be in a location that serves their family's needs (e.g., my husband requires medical care that's typically found only near large medical facilities and research universities).
There are thousands of people who could never meet the expectations of the jobs I'm applying for, but could be fine receptionists, accountants, or personal assistants. If I fill the receptionist opening, I will have reduced the options for those people. While I have unemployment benefits coming in, I'm choosing to avoid this scenario. Without unemployment benefits, I may have to acquiesce.
The Outlook on Job Reform
The job market needs more than new jobs. It needs a drastically transformed mindset on the part of managers, HR specialists, and recruiters. It needs application systems that work for the applicants as well as the companies. It needs internships and apprenticeships that are open to noncollege candidates. It needs CEOs who understand the value of training and the value of making every employee broadly employable rather than trained only for one niche in one company.
Ugh. I could go on. But time is precious and my job-hunting awaits. I will be applying for three positions this weekend, and I can assure you that I will have to best many, many more than 5 competitors for each one.
Respectfully,
Lill
[Art attributed to Gabriel Metsu.]
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