Live data from Hacker News

The world needs at least 600M new jobs in the next decade for young people

bloomberg.com

161–170 of 491 posts

Re: The world needs at least 600M new jobs in the next decade for young people

#161
post #96

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm curious if that sentence is itself an explanation for the perception that a 28 year old might not be an adult. In other words, at least in American culture, adulthood is strongly tied with stable employment. If the 15 - 29 age bracket in general does not enjoy stable employment, that could itself be responsible for creating the perception that members of this bracket are not adults.

Adulthood is also tied with marriage, home ownership, car ownership, child-rearing, etc... these things have been pushed back a decade or so as a result of too little money. By the standards of the 1950s, the 20-somethings of today aren't adults. That has sociological twists to it as well, of course-- but primarily economic. I suspect that people aren't actively avoiding having a house, car, wedding, or children, so…

> Adulthood is also tied with marriage, home ownership, car ownership, child-rearing

No. Just no.

Those are things which some adults do, that does not mean you aren't an adult if you don't do them.

Is a 40-year-old with a successful career who just never got married not an adult?

Stop insulting and marginalizing people.

Re: The world needs at least 600M new jobs in the next decade for young people

#162
post #47

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I agree that student loan debt seems like an asset bubble -- in that the price of an education greatly exceeds the valuation justified by the fundamentals. But I can't think of a way that the bubble could actually pop. Or what it would look like if it did. Unlike housing, you can't walk away from your education; student loans are designed to prevent debtors from ever escaping their obligations. They're also guarantee…

> But I can't think of a way that the bubble could actually pop. Or what it would look like if it did. It would look like a social movement. It would look like tens of millions of young people realizing that they have fallen under the yoke of life-long indentured servitude to the older generation, and either 1) getting organized enough to get the law changed or, 2) saying "fuck it, I've got nothing left to lose" and…

Makes me wonder if there's already some form of credit default swapping going on with student loans that we won't uncover until after the bubble pops.

Re: The world needs at least 600M new jobs in the next decade for young people

#163
post #125

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yeah, there's always some holdovers commenting from the era of easy jobs and easy money. Underemployment should be mentioned in any discussion of job difficulty; in the US, getting a job as a barista or fast food is possible, but a horrendous waste of a college education. It's really a shame that the US has decided to let its most educated generation ever suffer for its biggest strength.

> in the US, getting a job as a barista or fast food is possible, but a horrendous waste of a college education. Maybe. Not all college educations are created equal. Got a major in philosophy? You're not useful to the economy, there are no jobs and no one is wasting your education. Of course the example here is facetious, the point is this: If you have a college education/degree in something that is not marketable to…

I would posit that many businesses don't know the great value of a graduate with a good philosophy education. Critical thinking, clear writing, and persuasively advocating a position are all essential to business management.

Re: The world needs at least 600M new jobs in the next decade for young people

#164
post #146

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's part of the problem... you need a good resume to start with... many don't even take the time to work on that.

When I said "good resume", I did not mean "An aesthetically pleasing resume" or anything of that sort. I mean "A history containing the traits the would-be employer seeks".

I mean having a clear summary at the top regarding your desired position/goals, with a keyword mash of the technology you've used followed by details of work history, projects and the technologies used is a better place to start.

Having actual paragraphs combined with the keyword jumble goes a long way. You don't have to do excessive customization for each job.

Re: The world needs at least 600M new jobs in the next decade for young people

#165
post #87

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As a recent college grad who went to a community college and then a run-of-the-mill state school, my experience and general impression from my peers was that unless you shotgun as many job applications as possible, you're probably not going to hear back from anyone. My own hypothesis is that most companies are so obsessed with a potential "false positive" hire that they're perfectly okay with not investing in a new g…

I don't think that's true at all, although I can see where the stereotype comes from. The fact is, the more effort a potential applicant puts in before applying, the more likely they will be to get a job at the company they're targeting. That's not to say they'll get the job that's their first choice, but they may get another just that's equally good, or perhaps just a foot in the door. It always pays dividends to in…

I'm not convinced that more effort equals more success in this context. Actually I think the less effort you have to invest in getting a job the better the job will be.

Re: The world needs at least 600M new jobs in the next decade for young people

#166
post #139

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If "just get over it" were a solution, don't you think it would have worked by now? I don't think being flippant about people's lives is all that productive.

No, of course not. Just as with the dating metaphor, there are a lot of people who will never be mature enough to accept that. But that's something they have to deal with themselves. I'm not their therapist. I can't "be productive" and help them fix their self-esteem issues.

[deleted]

Re: The world needs at least 600M new jobs in the next decade for young people

#167
post #125

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yeah, there's always some holdovers commenting from the era of easy jobs and easy money. Underemployment should be mentioned in any discussion of job difficulty; in the US, getting a job as a barista or fast food is possible, but a horrendous waste of a college education. It's really a shame that the US has decided to let its most educated generation ever suffer for its biggest strength.

> in the US, getting a job as a barista or fast food is possible, but a horrendous waste of a college education. Maybe. Not all college educations are created equal. Got a major in philosophy? You're not useful to the economy, there are no jobs and no one is wasting your education. Of course the example here is facetious, the point is this: If you have a college education/degree in something that is not marketable to…

I agree that the educations aren't created equal, but consider what these kids were told going into college: a college degree = a good job.

The nuance of "the economy can't support liberal arts majors" didn't crop up with gusto until after the economy crashed, and isn't even true-- the economy can't support a bajillion physicists or electrical engineers either, nevermind that most people aren't cut out for it.

Re: The world needs at least 600M new jobs in the next decade for young people

#168

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Most of the comments here focus on how people aren't trying hard enough to get jobs. This article indicates that the jobs don't exist and that the problem is likely to get far worse. The reality is that BOTH are true. There is no law stating that each generation of humans should have it easier and with more resources available to them. My generation is facing this crisis, and the default response is to complain. Wh…

Speaking for myself (as a 22 year-old recent graduate) - I was brought up to respect my elders and to consider society as a mostly-altruistic, benevolent mass of humanity with a conscience bent more towards justice and meritocracy than corruption and inequality. I believed that the older generation who shape and structure society through government, industry, and academia were doing their absolute best to set future…

>I was brought up to respect my elders and to consider society as a mostly-altruistic, benevolent mass of humanity with a conscience bent more towards justice and meritocracy

Interesting. Do you see this as more of a failure in your upbringing, or of a failure of society to live up to your expectations? Has this realization changed your political thinking in any ways?

Re: The world needs at least 600M new jobs in the next decade for young people

#169

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Most of the comments here focus on how people aren't trying hard enough to get jobs. This article indicates that the jobs don't exist and that the problem is likely to get far worse. The reality is that BOTH are true. There is no law stating that each generation of humans should have it easier and with more resources available to them. My generation is facing this crisis, and the default response is to complain. Wh…

Speaking for myself (as a 22 year-old recent graduate) - I was brought up to respect my elders and to consider society as a mostly-altruistic, benevolent mass of humanity with a conscience bent more towards justice and meritocracy than corruption and inequality. I believed that the older generation who shape and structure society through government, industry, and academia were doing their absolute best to set future…

This is why young people need to vote.

Re: The world needs at least 600M new jobs in the next decade for young people

#170

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Adulthood is also tied with marriage, home ownership, car ownership, child-rearing, etc... these things have been pushed back a decade or so as a result of too little money. By the standards of the 1950s, the 20-somethings of today aren't adults. That has sociological twists to it as well, of course-- but primarily economic. I suspect that people aren't actively avoiding having a house, car, wedding, or children, so…

> Adulthood is also tied with marriage, home ownership, car ownership, child-rearing No. Just no. Those are things which some adults do, that does not mean you aren't an adult if you don't do them. Is a 40-year-old with a successful career who just never got married not an adult? Stop insulting and marginalizing people.

Just reiterating the state of the status quo's expectations-- they happen to be tied to useful and measurable economic activities.

I fully believe you can be an adult without any of the above.

Post reply on HN