Anyone else worried about the terrible job market?

[Sorryagain]

I’ve been self employed throughout my professional life - over 30 years. I was in one profession, then broadened out and added more skills and generated a lot of work in another industry.

Both industries are fucked. Tons of redundancies, no hires. Barely any contract work. Lots of people looking. LinkedIn is a cesspit.

I am used to the hustle - but I’ve never known it so hard, nigh on impossible, to get work.

Ive been applying for permanent roles I think I could do - but even with my tons of transferrable skills, such is the market that there are enough people who perfectly fit the job description that I don’t get a look in.

Im lucky in that I have a partner who works - but I want to work. I’m seriously terrified of how bad things are - it’s never been like this for me, ever.

I just wanted to see if others are facing this?

And because I think it’s a combo of AI and cost of living/economics, I can’t see how things will improve.

It’s abysmal out there atm. I had a steady 15 year + career prior to Covid. In recruitment, ironically enough. I’ve now been made redundant 4 times since lockdown. The last time I spent 10 months out of work and was only in my most recent role for 2 months. It’s soul destroying, stressful, and anxiety inducing. The world has changed.

That’s my area! I wonder if our paths have crossed…

Do we think it’s all just one way towards getting worse? Or that the economy might pick up?

The economy goes in cycles.

I wish I could be more positive about AI but I’ve such a deep feeling of foreboding about it. We’re on the cusp of something seismic and destructive, I feel.

Maybe 3-4 years ago there were quite a lot of decent jobs but it’s dried up in the last 1-2 years - so I’m glad I recently found a decent job (although that could be under threat soon).

Some of the younger people in my family have been applying for jobs and having no luck (not getting to interview stage even).

Yes, but some dips and recessions are worse and longer than others. Also, some types of job disappear and never come back, from rag-and-bone men to miners to typing pools, leaving staff trying to find new roles that fit their abilities, skills, locations - and ones that employers will hire these people for, instead of considering them under or over qualified, too old, too young, too irrelevant.

I don't think I've ever known so many people out of work, or in precarious jobs and looking for permanent ones. This includes everyone from recent graduates to people in their 60s.

The only thing I feel sure about regarding Rachel Reeve’s ideas, is that plenty of people will suffer but the expected improvements and money saving won’t really materialise (a bit like Brexit).

She’s (further) ruining this country, and Labour are fast turning into the new ‘Nasty Party’. Thank God, for whatever reason, I didn’t vote for them (I was going to).

Five people in my immediate family will potentially suffer from all her new reforms!

Go after the bloody tax evaders if you want some more money...

Yes, how does Rachel Reeves think all the people on PIP are going to get a job?

With a DC currently seeking employment and my own experience well past its sell by date, all the reassurance I can offer, is that it was just appalling in the early 1990s, but now there are more rules regulating your mortgage. Then, when you couldn't pay, it you posted your keys back to your lender and were homeless.

I agree that it would not be competitive now. I was just making the point that, because so much manufacturing had been moved abroad over the last few decades, many skilled jobs have been lost in the UK, creating a real vacuum in many areas. That has been one cause of the many social problems that are clearly visible now.
I think that AI and the deteriorating economy will lead to many other job losses in many white collar, well paid sectors over the next few years and decades. I guess people adjust but it's not always a positive adjustment.

@rainingsnoring I agree totally

It's really sad isn't it.
I am very sorry to read about those who have been made redundant on this thread. It sounds awful out there in some sectors.

I think my fear for our kids' future hinges on how much social stability can be maintained.

@rainingsnoring yep it is - there are so many factors as I said in my post earlier - and not all of it by any margin is the domestic economy -

I would say that this will be a terrible time for everyone. Civil servant isn’t one particular profession. It includes many different types of people from HR professionals, to comms, to IT, to statisticians, to finance etc etc. Tens of thousands of extra people flooding the market will make it harder for everybody looking for a job.

When times are difficult, the state should be providing more jobs, not less.

This. 100%. I am Labour supporter but this move was so ill-conceived.

With what money??

There will be thousands of public sector staff redundant by Christmas, many with lots of years service/experience/transferable skills and a reasonable amount of redundancy pay looking for consultancy and fixed term contracts to see them through to retirement. Personally, if it happens to me I’m stepping off the treadmill and will look for something completely different.

Thanks. I've read your post now.
I agree that there are a number of causes. Mainly technology and economic.
I would class the Uni cuts as mainly economic and have long thought that jobs would go at Unis as less young people applied for places and the government couldn't justify raising fees enough to cover ballooning costs. I can see this getting a lot worse over time. I also thought that we would have see more general job losses because of a worsening economy by now but it seems to be happening in the last 6-12 months, not that it wasn't great before that. Unfortunately, I can't see it improving, the opposite. It's hard to advise DC and they don't always listen anyway!

Im not sure it’s AI related yet - although it is clearly impacting creative freelancers. The AI issue is people using it to apply for countless jobs for which they’re under qualified and making it hard for recruiters to see the better application.
it is actually do to with instability, high NI, high tax, inflation and higher interest rates,Trump craziness hitting stock markets. A senior ish 60-100k non core role plus pension etc is a much bigger gamble in this climate.

From personal experience, there's also a lot of public sector staff who are dire at their jobs, used to being fairly complacent, and won't cut it in the private sector

@Sorryagain I don’t think it’s all about getting jobs - being hard about it I think it’s about those people who really have very tenuous claims not getting extra money on top of standard benefits, meaning some are at least as well off as those working. My son is 26 ( has ADHD) he works full time in a professional role but knows plenty in his age group who have never worked citing anxiety about work , we aren’t talking about those with severe autism or physically disabled or SEN situation.

Some tough reading here. The sector I know is the same. People with years of experience included.