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Unemployed office workers are having a harder time finding new jobs

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21–30 of 95 posts

Re: Unemployed office workers are having a harder time finding new jobs

#21
post #4

It’s been this way for at least 2 years. I suspect that WSJ held back such topics until after the election… The people I know that lose their job spend at least 1 year looking for a job. Usually at a significantly lower salary. With the current rate of inflation it’s a 1-2 punch that requires a big step down in lifestyle. I don’t really see these conditions changing until there is a AI bubble pop or something. Facebo…

It feels like FAANG needs to employ lots of people so they don't all go out and build competing services.

If skilled people are without work and their savings and lifestyle supports it, they should consider building startups.

Re: Unemployed office workers are having a harder time finding new jobs

#22
post #14

In our industry, they key to getting a job is simple: 1. Work on two meaningful projects using the tech you want a job in. Update your resume with the work that was done, without embellishment. 2. Open your profile on LinkedIn. Close it when you get five interviews. Learn from each failing interview.

This was great advice 15 years ago. Something has changed in the last two years. I can’t put my finger on it, but I’ve observed a trend where new hires have massively fraudulent experience on their resumes. Likewise an engineer who passed leetcode rounds suddenly doesn’t know what a variable is. At the very least, we have a problem with people using AI to game the job interview process.

I currently work remotely and was talking to my wife that if I loose this job we will have to relocate, no more remote jobs, I don't want to play the rat race. I participated in hiring (reviewing people's exercices) and all are gaming the system, none could explain simple things in the tech challenge they put together, some are prepared to answer some questions but it takes minutes to realize this person didn't do any of that.

Re: Unemployed office workers are having a harder time finding new jobs

#23
post #21
post #4

It’s been this way for at least 2 years. I suspect that WSJ held back such topics until after the election… The people I know that lose their job spend at least 1 year looking for a job. Usually at a significantly lower salary. With the current rate of inflation it’s a 1-2 punch that requires a big step down in lifestyle. I don’t really see these conditions changing until there is a AI bubble pop or something. Facebo…

It feels like FAANG needs to employ lots of people so they don't all go out and build competing services. If skilled people are without work and their savings and lifestyle supports it, they should consider building startups.

That’s what they did for years. I suspect there are some “nice” macroeconomic trends helping them avoid this. Like regulatory capture and the general regulatory fragmentation of the global tech sector. And that new AI tech is prohibitively expensive.

Re: Unemployed office workers are having a harder time finding new jobs

#24
It's kind of odd that the tech sector has so many talented people desperate for any job, yet companies aren't taking them on. Those same companies continue to pay their existing staff such exorbitantly high compensation. You'd think things would equalize out a bit as companies take advantage of this situation to get cheaper talent.

Re: Unemployed office workers are having a harder time finding new jobs

#25

In our industry, they key to getting a job is simple: 1. Work on two meaningful projects using the tech you want a job in. Update your resume with the work that was done, without embellishment. 2. Open your profile on LinkedIn. Close it when you get five interviews. Learn from each failing interview.

No offense but this is outdated as giving advice like “did you walk in and talk to the manager? Be sure to give him a firm handshake and look him in the eye.”

These days your personal network matters most. If you don’t have one start working on one. Your resume might never see human eyes otherwise. Nobody cares about your GitHub sadly.

Re: Unemployed office workers are having a harder time finding new jobs

#26

Earlier quoted context omitted.

How can what you're saying be true if Elon Musk says we need more H1Bs because there is a labor shortage?

There's a lack of dirt cheap highly educated labor. It dovetails nicely into their desire to slash education for Americans Once we deport all the "illegal" immigrants, the MAGA folk can pick fruit in Florida while the H1B's work at Amazon for pennies on the dollar I suppose

[flagged]

Re: Unemployed office workers are having a harder time finding new jobs

#27
It's just a whole lot harder to find good employment now. And if you are employed, it's just difficult to understand the pain it is to get re-employed.

Read the story about the guy who used to sell a bag of dicks and made $100k in like 10 days for years ago. That wasn't just a lightning in a bottle idea, that's because normal people had $20 to send anonymous bags of dicks to each other for funsies. I see those people at the food bank, now.

Re: Unemployed office workers are having a harder time finding new jobs

#28

I can definitely attest to this statistic. Got thrown overboard at my last job for not wanting to sign my name to things we weren't doing (no I'm not telling the IRS we encrypt our data at rest when we don't!) Finally got brought on a week ago at a PC repair shop of all things. It's not glamorous but it's the only "IT related" thing I could find. In Seattle of all places! The FAANG's doing their massive layoffs cause…

How can what you're saying be true if Elon Musk says we need more H1Bs because there is a labor shortage?

Maybe because Musk mixes a lot of BS into his sayings?

Re: Unemployed office workers are having a harder time finding new jobs

#29
post #24

It's kind of odd that the tech sector has so many talented people desperate for any job, yet companies aren't taking them on. Those same companies continue to pay their existing staff such exorbitantly high compensation. You'd think things would equalize out a bit as companies take advantage of this situation to get cheaper talent.

It’s because they’re working those people to death and don’t want them to leave. Better to pay one person $225k per year than two people $150k per year.

Re: Unemployed office workers are having a harder time finding new jobs

#30

Earlier quoted context omitted.

How can what you're saying be true if Elon Musk says we need more H1Bs because there is a labor shortage?

There's a lack of dirt cheap highly educated labor. It dovetails nicely into their desire to slash education for Americans Once we deport all the "illegal" immigrants, the MAGA folk can pick fruit in Florida while the H1B's work at Amazon for pennies on the dollar I suppose

Lower turnover too with H1Bs
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