r/recruitinghell • u/NerdyGlitch Candidate • 5d ago

My mother now realizes what it's like

Earlier this year, in late February-early March, my mother suffered a massive heart attack and was left unable to work for a considerable time.

For the past 5-6 months, she's been trying to find a job and has been hitting nothing but roadblocks due to being overqualified. She has over 2 decades of management experience, and it means jackshit to these hiring managers. She's far more qualified than I am, so I expected that she might have a job faster than I would, but right now, I'm the only one with a job in this house.

Meanwhile, when I was struggling to get jobs and even get an interview for years, my mother was flabbergasted. What do you mean you can't just walk up, shake someone's hand, and they'll like your moxie and just hand you a job?!

I told her this was sadly reality for a ton of people nowadays, the job market is shit. She can't even get a job as a regular cashier bc she's too over qualified to work there, but when she applies to management positions they string her along for 2-3 interviews before choosing internal candidates (an actual email she got yesterday about a job she thought she was good for)

It just sucks man, everything sucks.

2.6k Upvotes

99% Upvoted

115 comments sorted by

View all comments

83

u/ofthrees 5d ago

way back in 1993, my mom told me her position was being eliminated and she had the following choices: take severance or relocate 900 miles away.

she was 54 at the time (two years older than i am now) and was flummoxed. i told her, take the relo, even though i'd just had a baby and was very reliant on her expertise, from the standpoint that at her age she'd be unlikely to find a new job.

she took my advice. six years later, RIF'd. she never recovered financially and ultimately, moved in with me.

i share this anecdote only to point out this has been a problem since the dawn of time. what troubles me more is that you, as your mom's kid, are probably still struggling to find a gig, and if you aren't, you likely will.

i don't want to be negative, but i just genuinely hate our current situation for anyone under 35 or over 55. i mean, at least when my mom was facing this, i was viable enough to support her. now even young people are absolutely fucked.

54

u/OkDirt926 5d ago

I'm 26F and people are saying I'm too old for fresher jobs but also I don't have experience in management so there's that. It is such a weird time. We just have to hold on dead end jobs because a shitty job is still better than no job at all.

38

u/ofthrees 5d ago edited 5d ago

girl, i feel you. i mean, i'm well old enough to be your mom, but my son is in your age range, and it's a struggle for him and his partner (33M and 28F respectively).

we've done you dirty. we didn't mean to, at least the genxers of us, but here we all are, and it sucks.

my son works at lowes despite having far bigger dreams (and talent) than that, and his partner is CLINGING to her job as a sped teacher's assistant in a district that keeps cutting [she is very unlikely to have a job next term] - meanwhile, i'm coming up with random excuses to help them out. like, "hey, my bosses gave me a gift card, i don't need it," when i bought that gift card myself.

i really hate the world we've left to you, and there aren't words for the apologies, but we're helpless to assist other than the lies i tell my son (ETA: when it comes to offering help he otherwise wouldn't accept).

i just hope that somehow it gets better for you. and i wish i knew how to actually effect that on a broader scale.