Unemployment and job prospects - WEEK 151

Let's start with a story.

I woke up early in the morning, as I did every day of the week. I calmly got ready and left the house, ready for another day at my job in a company related to wood and wood products. The pandemic was beginning.

When I arrived at the office, I was met with an unpleasant surprise: an urgent meeting with the human resources manager.

At the meeting, the manager explained to us that the company was suffering financial difficulties and that they could not cope with the consequences of the pandemic, so there would be redundancies in all areas.

The more the manager talked, the more I felt an upset stomach grow, the kind you get when your nerves attack.

The following days were filled with uncertainty and tension. We all looked at each other nervously and wondered who would be fired next. Productivity declined, and the atmosphere in the office became increasingly tense.

Finally, the day came. I received a call from the human resources manager and he informed me that my position had been eliminated. I had the feeling that the ground had been taken out from under my feet. Any number of questions ran through my mind. Issues such as paying rent, car payments, medicines, children's school fees and so much more.

The following weeks were a constant struggle. I sent out resumes and applied to every job I could find, but there didn't seem to be any opportunities, almost all of them were going through a circumstance I had never experienced before, companies were closing because there was no face-to-face activity. With each passing day, uncertainty and despair overwhelmed me.

Finally, after a few months, my cousin talked to me about working remotely. I had heard about it, but I had never worked that way. I did some research and started looking for a job or offering my services remotely.

A company came along that needed me to serve as a virtual assistant to receive and answer emails, take care of social media, and occasionally attend to a client via video.

They offered me a higher amount than I was earning in my old job and that motivated me to accept. By the way, I was paid in dollars. I had no idea how to charge for my services.

At first, there was a feeling of insecurity, of worry about my future at work. But as the days went by, I realised that the job was very easy, I could perform all my duties to the best of my ability and, by the way, I could do it in my pyjamas because I was doing it at home.

After a short time, I discovered that I could not only serve one client, but I could work with several. So I continued to offer my services and this resulted in more clients.

My income began to multiply and when one client was satisfied, I was referred to another. From that moment on I said goodbye to my financial worries, my life was more peaceful and I didn't have to be anyone's employee.

With this story, I want to point out something that happened to many people, especially in my country.

When the pandemic hit, face-to-face jobs plummeted and many people were out of work.

I was lucky enough to be able to recover with a virtual job, but many did not do so well, some became ill and some made regrettable decisions about their lives.

Even before the pandemic arrived, the employment situation was influenced by a variety of economic, social, and political factors. This allowed for constant change.

I will speak from what I know, which is what was happening in my country. What is still going on in the country

In my country, a political-economic-social disgrace (communism) fell more than 20 years ago and this led to the ruin of the country, resulting in very few sources of employment. This led many people to work in the informal economy.

When the pandemic hit and everyone was confined, that informal economy practically died. It was a horrible situation.

When the exit bans were only recently lifted, some trading companies became active and hired some people, but the supply has been so poor that it is not a solution to the demand for employment. Others returned to the informal economy, but resources were needed to be able to buy and then sell.

In my opinion, many were not prepared for what happened in 2020 and hence few of us were able to withstand the tsunami that destroyed the economy.

This leads me to think that we should always train in two or more trades, much more than just one profession because we don't know when the lean times will come again.

In some locations and sectors of the economy, the employment situation could improve in the near future due to economic recovery and the creation of new jobs. However, in other places and sectors, the employment situation could remain uncertain due to automation, global competition, and other challenges. The latter is happening globally.

As I said before, we have to train, new times, and new careers have arrived and this is motivated by the advent of artificial intelligence.

The same thing is happening when robots arrived in factories. There was no longer a need for some workers, but there was a need for employees who knew how to supervise the machines; so it will be with artificial intelligence.

If we had optimal government management in my country, which could distribute resources for entrepreneurship, and job creation and not for the enrichment of a few in the upper echelons of government, the labor situation would not be something to worry about.

Policies and measures that promote education, skills development and innovation are needed, as well as policies that support workers and protect their rights and welfare.

But communism doesn't want you to be an entrepreneur, it wants you to be poor, without options, so that it can stay in power.

Something I would like to add is that universities have fallen short with the advance of technology. There are careers that have become obsolete and there is a lack of careers that adapt to the new perspectives.

Many already have it in mind that in order to earn money, you don't need to be a university graduate. This is alarming, and those in power are not taking it seriously.

My humble opinion.