Job market is awful

DS graduated last month applied for four jobs, interviews for two, he got both jobs.. his partner is applying for jobs all the time. She can't get an interview at all. She does have a job but not in the field she studied.

It's a mess in the north even if you're in a city.

This AI nonsense means that quite often, real people never see a CV.

I read an article recently about a company that was using AI to screen applicants. They had a go at using it with their own CVs, and the CEO's CV was rejected in seconds. 😂

So very true! My daughter is a junior designer. She just had the horrible experience of a small company inviting her for a job interview in order to steal her ideas but not actually employ her.

It's frightening reading this thread.
I have this dark, horrible feeling that what we are seeing now is the beginning of the end of the first world. I feel deeply in my consciousness that a U turn has started; the developing countries are getting more work, more skilled, richer and more powerful, whilst the developed countries are losing their scaffolding; we are getting weaker and we are getting much poorer.
In the future, our next generation will be doing the worst jobs in society or won't be able to get a job at all.
I think we are seeing the start of a seismic change.

I have read that recruiters are using AI to screen applications. The AI I assume trawls for key words .Recruitment agents are going to find it increasingly difficult to field candidates. My son says that he has received his applications bounced back within minutes with what looks like an automated email.

I decide to use AI to help write my CV and I did not recognise myself in this new version. I also felt that it would set me up as being a huge disappointment and quite frankly an imposter. I couldn't use it but was an interesting experiment.

I think things are only going to get worse. I don't think any government can tackle this......we are not an island despite being an island. The forces at play are global.

Dh made redundant over a year ago. He managed to find a 6 month contract but that’s now ended and there is just nothing out there. No one wants to employ him below the level he was before as they think he’ll just move on at the first sign of a better offer. He’s been offered a job in the Middle East but don’t think we’re that desperate yet. I’m trying to get back in to work after being a sahm - I’ve updated my skills, have retrained and have new professional qualifications but also can’t find anything even at basic entry level. The govt are killing the economy, it’s flipping miserable.

Employers also cannot be bothered to send a generic email to everyone on the applicant list, saying "no thank you". They just get ghosted, sometimes after final round interviews. I've also read some shocking stories in the media about the hoops and multiple interviews that recruiters are making people do just for minimum wage jobs. There needs to be an overhaul of recruitment practices and what employers can get away with when people are vulnerable and will do anything to get a job.

The labour government have done this to young people by further increasing the minimum wage for young people and increasing the employer NI contributions for young people. No one wants to employ them

It's horrendously bad. Where I come from, in the north east of England it's always been this bad as long as I've been alive as we lost our local industry so growing up I really struggled to find the hours of work to get by. I since moved to a different region where it's been much easier to build a career. What we're seeing now is the same thing I've always known but everywhere in the country..it's really scary as it's an indication that the economy is really bad now. I hope it improves but there doesn't seem to be any end in sight at the moment. I feel terribly for those who are really struggling.

I have just been offered a job today, more money and stress. Meanwhile my youngest son, step son and step daughter can not find anything other than part time low paid or zero hrs. I'm 53 and would love to work part time in a low stress job, but no one will let me! Employers don't seem to want to offer young people a job and absolutely will not offer any training. My eldest son is doing ok. I can understand why young people have anxiety and many are just dropping out.

I have two degrees, 15 years leadership experience and am unemployed- it’s been three years. Totally devastating

People do love to make it so simplistic, it’s really hard out there I graduated way back and flew to Asia to work I was in my early 20s and I’d say to any young person look wider and further afield for work. My DS is working in France and I think until the UK economy really kicks up a gear maybe 5 years time I fear it will carry on like this.

Ive been looking and locally to me there is absolutely nothing unless you want to work in a care home or be a deliveroo driver and its only going to get worse

They won't be. It keeps their costs down.

My DS just graduated and it’s not fun out there. A few years ago he could’ve walked in to a job w his qualifications but now …. He has interests, is volunteering and can prob pick up a few shifts in his old uni holiday job but it’s truly crap. I think he’s disheartened so he CBA, although has some work experience coming up (through a contact).
DD also a grad working retail (nice job but not a grad job by any means).
They are both highly intelligent and I just see those 3 years as a bit of a waste!

Absolutely.

And it's not just experienced people. DD (in her 20s) was out of work for a long time, and it was so irritating to be told, "She needs to take any job she can get - the longer she's out of work the less employable she will be." No shit Sherlock (and thanks for making me feel even more depressed about it). But when you've applied for pretty much everything you can find, and been rejected or ghosted by them all, what then?

Agreed generally bad all ages but would say in SE struggling to recruit basic ground workers 360 drivers & other basic labouring. Ditto entry level 18 & 21 insurance jobs. Youngsters not interested as not trendy media. This is my personal experience so any posters in this location worth considering these areas.

Perhaps try remote working yourself . I'm in ireland and the pharma sector is generally thriving ? Depends on what part you're in though I suppose.

@cityliving99sorry to hear that. I think that’s where we are heading to be honest. Years ago he’d be headhunted for a role but the jobs just aren’t there anymore. I feel so sad for the life we had. The constant worry about finding money to pay for food and bills is exhausting.

If they are a British Company they should be ashamed.

We were in the same boat. My DH ended up taking a job which had a far lower salary. We will both now have to work for longer than we were hoping to.

Yes, you see it on MN a lot – when someone loses their job, they’re told to pick up any available work, including shifts in supermarkets and so on.
Nothing wrong with these jobs, but are they really available to someone with 10+/20+ senior experience?
I mean, people are being told they’re overqualified even when applying for jobs in their actual field, but at a lower level.
Why would Tesco hire someone like that to stack shelves?

It’s worst than 08, but the things that allowed us to recover from ‘08 are no longer available, so I really don’t know where we go from here.

It’s bad in the middle and it’s bad at the bottom. A market like this leaves no room for career mobility for our young.

I think we’re less than 10 years away from warehouse and care work being considered the go to student/graduate jobs the way retail and hospitality were, with those jobs being taken by the middle-aged underemployed.

I’m a generally optimistic person but I just don’t see how things in the job market get better rather than worse, short of UBI or an overhaul of our visa system, which are equally unlikely.

In our experience it is awful op. I have a nearly 27 year old with Biotech degree and a 19 year old. Ds1 has had 2 temp jobs( one he moved for it was 6 months)They weren't biotech roles. He has had nothing for 2 years. His last 6 months of Uni were at home because of Covid lockdown etc. This includes voluntary roles. Absolutely zilch. He has had 3 interviews in 2 years! It seems 'the who you know' is more important than ever . My 19 year old is applying for all sorts. It is so disheartening for them and worrying for us as parents.

Yep. DH has been out of work for over a year due to redundancy. He’s in software design. Applied for over 100 jobs, only had 2 interviews. It’s so, so depressing.