Utilize the Crazy Job Market
Changes in the job market are stunning. Jobs are paying more on average, and employers seem more desperate. What is happening?
My own story might answer that question. When the pandemic started, I was working at a nursing home as a life enrichment coordinator, which is a fancy way to say “activities assistant.” I helped elderly residents with crafts, movies, exercise, and serving at gatherings. It did not pay much. I started off under $15 an hour, and after four years I made just over $17.
In 2020 many employees at nursing homes quit in droves, and this included my boss and people on my team in activities. Many nurses and their assistants quit. And here the chronic problems began. We did not have enough staff, so those of us who remained had to shoulder more of the burden. This led to even more employees leaving. It was a vicious cycle, and every time anyone came down with COVID-19, more people left, both residents and employees. The place was emptying out.
Thus began our corner of the Great Resignation, taking place across the country.
Who Was Quitting?
One noticeable fact is that nursing homes are mostly staffed by women. Women work in the kitchen, in activities, at the front desk, as nurses, in middle management, and as nursing assistants. Men work there too, but they are rare and often work as drivers, cooks, or in upper management.
And look who was most affected by the virus. Women! Arguably, women’s lives changed the most, not in COVID infection rates, but in their daily lives. Schools closed and went online, and women stayed home with the kids. Women in fast food, supermarkets, teachers, admins, and other service jobs quit in droves. The lucky ones were able to work from home as wave after wave of the disease closed cities down. Men quit or lost their jobs too, of course, but more women were affected. And during the pandemic women’s mental and physical health has suffered.
Front line workers were celebrated for going to jobs despite the danger. In the nursing home, we were paid $2 extra for a few months. But more employees quit anyway, and the extra pay was discontinued. Then the economy started to roar back as things opened up around us.
People were, and are, quitting in droves. According to CNBC, 48 million people in this country quit their jobs in 2021, particularly jobs with low pay, poor working conditions, and toxic work environments.
Here in 2022, if you are looking for work, particularly hourly work, it is available. Workers are looking for remote positions and better hours, pay, and working conditions. Take advantage!
As for me, I remained at my job at the nursing home until mid-2021, when I found a job working from home. I accept less money, but the work culture (on Zoom) is fantastic. The organization is nonprofit, and I feel I am making a difference. But I peruse the job ads anyway, with wonder at the pay increases in my sector of the economy. If you are an employer, I am sorry for your discomfort, but if you are a worker, now is the time to shine up your resume.
