Starting this week, I hope to bring some perspective regarding unemployment. Generally, the discussion seems to be dominated by politicians, TV pundits, business reporters and academic researchers. Everyone knows it’s a problem, but no one seems to know how to fix it. More specifically, there’s been no agreement or, dare I say, compromise, on how to solve it. There’s one group of people that are often are overlooked regarding this discussion of unemployment: the unemployed. Occasionally, the unemployed do get their say in news articles, especially when the monthly U.S. unemployment rate is released. Still, it’s only a couple of quotes from a handful of people accompanied by a photo of well-dressed people in line at a career fair.
As someone who has lost his job through no fault of my own (more than once I hate to admit), I’m hoping to chip in my two cents regarding this economic crisis that is still affecting millions of people. Most of what I’ll have to offer will not be quantitative statistics like the monthly Bureau of Labor Statistics, but rather qualitative observations and unorthodox (perhaps humorous) suggestions about things the unemployed deal with every week: resumes, job postings, unemployment insurance, transportation issues, mental health concerns, personal relationships and the aforementioned career fairs. Ultimately, I hope to create unemployment awareness. Then maybe, just maybe, talking about it in public won’t be as awkward anymore.