July 24, 2010 7:05 AM

This time, it really is personal

Anyone who’s hung ‘round my dark, cobwebby corner of dan Interweb for any length of time is painfully aware that the issue of unemployment is personal for me. This coming Thursday, July 29th, will mark six months since I lost my job. I’m one of the lucky ones, in that I have no family to support, my rent is paid for the next 10 months, and I have the financial resources to keep myself in kibble for the time being. I’m not wondering where my next Big Mac is coming from, and I can pay what few bills I have. Not a day goes by when I don’t thank my lucky stars for being where I am…because things could be SO much worse.

I may be in reasonably good shape for the time being, but that doesn’t mean I’m enjoying being sans gainful employment. I do want to find meaningful, fulfilling employment. Sure, My suntan is much farther along than it was at this time last year, but that’s not what makes me get out of bed in the morning. I really DO want to be productive, to create value, to do something useful and meaningful. It’s just that no one seems to be hiring, and the jobs I do find tend to be offering $10- $14 per hour. I get that it’s a buyer’s market, and no businessman will pay more than he or she absolutely has to, but this is silly. I’m truly amazed the things that businesses expect for their $12/hour. The list of qualifications employers demand, and the expectations they have of potential vassals seems completely out of whack. I don’t know what it’s like in other parts of the country, but here in Portland, far too many employers are barely willing to pay above what a good barista might make. Then again, when you look at it in terms of supply and demand, it’s easier to understand what’s driving wages down.

It’s not as if I was getting rich in my previous gig, and it certainly wasn’t about to become exponentially better any time soon. Still, it’s becoming clear that my prospects for even equaling my previous salary are precarious. Even when (or if) the economy bounces back, we may be looking at millions of Americans making significantly less than they were previously. We could well be in the process of becoming a nation of workers living hand to mouth, paycheck to paycheck. How that is in anyone’s best interest is anyone’s guess, though I imagine the businesses are not at all unhappy with the idea of keeping labor costs down.

The lasting legacy of this recession will be that the rich get richer at the expense of the middle class. We’re on the way to create a lasting socioeconomic climate in which this generation have little hope of equaling the standard of living enjoyed by their parents’ generation. I’m thankful for the relatively easy to manage situation I’m in, but there are millions wondering what happens next. How do they put food on the table or pay the mortgage? I can’t even imagine what that must be like. It’s difficult enough with dealing with the self-doubt, the rejection, and the uncertainty of wondering when (or if) things will turn around for me. Like anyone, I have good days and bad days. There are a lot of GOOD things about having time for myself, but I’m at the point where having less of that would be a good thing. It’s just not looking as if that’s going to happen any time soon.

The reality that millions of us are waking up to is that this is not the America that our parents bequeathed us. It’s an America where the Social Contract is in shambles and the rich are becoming richer at the expense of the middle class. It’s an America that makes me understand the appeal of Socialism. I can say that because I’m not running for office, of course, but given our inequitable times, it bears consideration. We toil for and subsidize the rich, but we’re responsible for our own well-being? If the playing field was even it would be one thing…but it’s clearly not. In an era when Republicans see unemployment benefits as a drag on the deficit but tax cuts for the wealthy as stimulative and appropriate, you really do have to wonder how we began traveling down this rabbit hole.

Welcome back to the wonderful era of oligarchy. Who says history isn’t circular??

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This page contains a single entry by Jack Cluth published on July 24, 2010 7:05 AM.

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