Here I go again :-(

[BringBackCatsEyes]

Was made redundant in Sept last year. Found work in Jan of this year after months of dehumanising, depressing searching.
It's a 12 month fixed term contract. I am doing very well. The company is doing well.
Was told today it won't be renewed. Now I have to remain professional while looking for work.

I am a lone parent, age 55.
I don't know if I can go through it all again.

I am in academic science. There are few jobs in my field.

Solidarity. I'm currently on my third redundancy since the crash. We will get through it.

It's a fixed term contract. When does your contract end?

I'm older than you and looking for work, and all I get is rejection if I hear at all, so I can appreciate why you feel down.

I do feel for you, but it’s a fixed term contract. Their is no obligation for them to renew, and you’re not being made redundant.

It ends at the end of Dec (Happy Christmas to us). I have 7 months. I know when this initial feeling of rejection and worthlessness dies down I will be able to take stock and know I do have time, but right now I feel exactly as I did last Sept.

I cannot be out of work.
During my last period of unemployment I got very, very low. I couldn't even 'just get a job in Tesco'.
I do not have a large financial buffer.
The salaries for jobs I spent a day or 2 applying for are not enough to support a modest home and 2 people.

I cannot deal with people saying it'll all be OK. They don't know that. Most of them do not know what it's like to be the sole earner responsible for a teenager.

If I don't find work, my small buffer will go down rapidly. I will then have to sell my home.

I know that.

Is tutoring an option?

So so sorry you’re enduring this stress. It’s hellish.

@BringBackCatsEyes , I've been out of work for months and months. I just about get through each day.

You will get through it.
I tell myself that each day because otherwise I feel nothing but despair.
A few days and I might have a contract lined up.

You have several months to find something that suits you. Good luck with your search, it will happen.

Well at Xmas time places like Tesco ARE looking for seasonal support.

If you look at it logically - nothing has changed. You signed up for a contract with an end date and that date hasn't changed...

Wishing you the best of luck OP. I wonder whether other optimistic posters truly understand how hard this job market is - it is completely unlike any time I’ve ever been looking for work, I can see from the applications we get for vacancies in my team.

I applied for seasonal work last year at Tesco. I was rejected.

Of course I understand that nothing has changed, I am still extremely upset. I was hoping they would keep me on. The work will still be there - it's increasing.

Thank you. There were 120 applicants for the job I currently have. I've been told how lucky they are to have my experience and expertise.

Thank you. I am dreading the feeling of making myself get out of bed every morning.

Try teaching in FE. There are usually jobs and always looking for science teachers.

I know my field of expertise....teaching isn't one of them. But thank you.

Is there any area around your expertise which would give you the possibility of contracting or a side-gig or something?

If so, start trying to secure something like that now, and do it alongside your existing role until December so that you aren’t facing a cliff-edge situation.

I was actually doing some contract work from Nov - Mar, but it dried up.
It's also not tenable to work 7 days a week.
I stopped myself booting off my cv to them a couple of hours ago. No one's reading cvs on Friday afternoon.
I also need to sit with my low mood over the w/e.

It's pretty busy working full time as a lone parent to a teenager. Finding the time to apply for jobs properly fills me with doom.

BUT I do have work at the moment so I am not in the same position I was in last year. The future does look bleak.

Thank you for giving me a space to vent.
I haven't told my sons yet. Obviously they know I'm on a fixed term contract and I never said I was confident of renewal.

I totally feel for you. I am 54 and was made redundant end of February and so far I was ghosted or rejected for all of the 80 plus roles I applied for.
I have never seen anything like it. The 7 steps interview processes, the ghosting, the contempt shown in interviews.... horrific.

I am in a slightly better position as DH has a full time job but I feel cut off my career and spat out like a dirty piece of trash.

I applied for 35 jobs from end Jul to mid Nov. I did hear back from most. Each one took at least a day to apply for. Some University ones were like a sodding dissertation! Quite a few I was over qualified for.

Some were rejected about 2 mins after I hit send, so clearly it had been though AI - though of course we must not use AI in our applications.
I had a few leads. There's no 7 step process in my field.

Yes, the sense of worth takes a beating. I did some volunteer work while I was looking; they appreciated me!

That's the easy part. I get up thinking I'll do lots. Feel overwhelmed. Check mail mail. Filled in an application or 2. Feel despondent ... now it's 19.25. I could go for a walk or something...
I'll stay on here or watch tv. Maybe tomorrow will be better.

I'm not like that. I know I feel better once I'm up and dressed.
I will have to be disciplined with myself.
I just want to get another job now and get out of the place that says they really value me and talks about how well the business is doing bla bla, but yeah....byeeeee.

Deep breath and head up. Job applications are ridiculous these days. My last one I had to evidence all the essential criteria - 12 pages with 4-6 on each page. It was about 3000 words only for me to get an interview and come second to the internal candidate they had lined up for the job. Total waste of time.

can you try a recruiter/agency? Good luck -it’ll work out but the limbo is horrible.

It probably helps that my bedroom gets morning sunshine and has been very warm recently.