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Ask HN: Are you unable to find employment?

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Re: Ask HN: Are you unable to find employment?

#272

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why should it be illegal for American companies to operate abroad when they have international revenue streams?

[flagged]

America will be a lot poorer if the foreigners would not do so much of the work. This claim is in the same ballpark as saying we should not be allowed to use machines. I am really astonished that there are many people who obviously are able to read and write, but somehow don't understand economics 101.

Re: Ask HN: Are you unable to find employment?

#273

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm in my early 40s and struggle at times because although my hair is black, my beard is entirely silver, which (I think) adds 10+ years to me. And while I'm at the IC5/6 level in Product, I still worry about it, and think if I had to find a new job, sorry, fiancée who loves my beard, it has to go, or I think I'm going to have a hard time.

Sorry if this is a stupid question, but did you consider dyeing your beard a different colour?

Truly a suggestion fitting of an employment apocalypse.

Re: Ask HN: Are you unable to find employment?

#274
post #49

Earlier quoted context omitted.

And we see PG talking up H1B on twitter. I'd like to think that if he still read HN he might not do that. Really companies should be banned from importing more people[1] if they laid off a certain number in the last year. That way the job market would be more likely to self correct. [1] I think they should still be allowed to hire people who are already in the country on a visa, as it's unfair to make their risk of b…

I think it should be a decay function that looks back longer than a year.

I think if you say you're hiring 0.01% people you should be willing to pay 0.01% salary.

Re: Ask HN: Are you unable to find employment?

#275

While I have been self-employed for a few decades, I do see and hear about what's happening out there. I have many friends who have had challenges and others who are afraid to leave their jobs, even when paid well under what they are worth. One of them finally gave up and took a job in the oil fields in New Mexico. This, after sending hundreds of applications and enduring a few 5 to 7 stage interviews, only to be tol…

I am okay with universities have two years of unrelated classes because that's part of what higher education has traditionally been about - exposure to a lot of concepts, and I agree many have very little impact on your career as a software developer, but a degree was historically about more than just getting a job. It's slowly morphed that way over time, but if your main goal is getting a programming job, there are much faster and cheaper (free) ways to do that in 2024. There are 100 lifetimes on quality online content around software development and learning those skills, building a portfolio, and being able to demonstrate them well in an interview will definitely land you a job (at least prior to 2024 it would)

Re: Ask HN: Are you unable to find employment?

#276

Earlier quoted context omitted.

[flagged]

As a European it feels weird to know that 55 percent of US population/voters have a very similar opinion, while on this big US based blog these opinions get downvoted. I will never ever understand what is currently and 8 years ago is/was going on in the US.

With regard to the downvoting, that’s easy: HN members are far from being representative of the US voting population.

Re: Ask HN: Are you unable to find employment?

#277
post #3

I’m self-employed so I don’t have personal experience, but all around me (in Berlin) people are struggling to find work. I have more unemployed friends than ever and they stay unemployed for longer than ever. Others are afraid to risk their job in any way. Employers got bolder in their demands and English-speaking workers are fighting for scraps. The UX industry is absolutely cutthroat right now. I work in immigratio…

Germany always was an importer of energy, and a couple of years ago it decided to replace energy imports from Russia with imports from other countries. Many had warned that this would hurt the country's economy. Even those who were, and still are, in charge acknowledged the fact. But they prefer it this way.

France is also an energy importer but they built nuclear power so that they couldn't be held hostage. Unfortunately the German government was run by former east German communists who didn't mind being held hostage.

Re: Ask HN: Are you unable to find employment?

#278
post #203

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There is a shortage of American workers willing to work for internationally competitive salaries. This is similar in Europe, by the way. Industry associations claim that there is a shortage of skilled workers, whereas in reality there is only a shortage of skilled workers willing to work for low-ish salaries. On the other hand, paying everyone higher salaries across the board would have its own economic consequences.

The economic consequences would be an increased percent of the economy going to wages instead of returned as dividends and stock buyback. Wage income also has a higher velocity of money increasing economic activity.

Wage increases also drive inflation. And given the uncertainties of the present times, people might opt to save more of their earnings rather than spending it all.

Re: Ask HN: Are you unable to find employment?

#279

The longest period of unemployment I've ever experienced ended about 6 months ago. I was unemployed for 11 months. The company that finally hired me was intentionally targeting people with lots of experience. I have that. They also pay less than I used to make but I took it because I needed a job. Previous to that period of unemployment, my resume tended to get noticed. I got interviews from 3 applications out of 5.…

Why do you think the white male part is relevant? This is meant as an honest question. I know DEI is a thing, but it kind of already seems a bit out of fashion, and do we have any reason to believe that the labour market is easier for a Muslim woman?

Idk, for me occams razor tells me that the labour market is just a bit shit for all genders and races at the moment..

Re: Ask HN: Are you unable to find employment?

#280
post #278

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The economic consequences would be an increased percent of the economy going to wages instead of returned as dividends and stock buyback. Wage income also has a higher velocity of money increasing economic activity.

Wage increases also drive inflation. And given the uncertainties of the present times, people might opt to save more of their earnings rather than spending it all.

This is why people should index wages as a percentage of the total enocomy. Because 'inflation' only means anything when compared to something else. Just saying inflation is meaningless by itself.
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