“Everyone Is Hiring,” but it’s Still Hard to Find a Job
We have all heard the news about the ongoing labor shortage and that jobs are available everywhere. If you tell someone you are looking for a job, you will often receive the response that “everywhere is hiring right now.” While it certainly seems that way, I can tell you this is not the case, or at least that employers are unwilling to hire just anyone, even if they are perfectly qualified.
Even with a labor shortage, companies make high demands with low pay and are still highly selective in their hiring process. Additionally, there is a disconnect between corporate and stores with their hiring needs, resulting in job openings that are not actually open. Overall, no one is winning in this situation, and the stigma that one is only unemployed right now because one is lazy does not help.
I speak primarily from my own experience, though I do have friends looking for better jobs, or at least jobs that are not the terrible ones they currently have and hate. I felt forced to leave my job at the beginning of March 2022 due to medical issues caused by my work environment and a boss who managed to skirt OSHA regulations without consequences (the full story: How OSHA Cost Me My Job). Since leaving that job, I have applied to at least 35 positions: half of them remote, half of them local. Of those 35-plus jobs, only one hired me, and…
