Tons of Cash…But None for New Hires

So this is what a jobless recovery looks like?

According to Standard & Poor’s, 500 of the country’s biggest companies are sitting on $842 billion in cash. So why aren’t they hiring new employees, or ones to replace those they laid off during the downturn?

Theories abound and have been the subject of many articles. Companies would rather hoard cash to prop up their stock prices. Uncertainty about regulations coming out of Washington, particularly regarding health care and taxes, have made them reluctant to expand now. Perhaps they are simply waiting for signs of a stronger recovery before hiring. In fairness, why should companies bring in new workers only to have to let them go when the economy dips down again?

Of course, from my vantage point as a jobless person, I think greed is at work here. As long as the few workers they have left are doing the job and making a company profitable, well, why mess with a good thing? If companies can make more with fewer employees, they will do that for as long as they can.

At some point, however, overworked employees will begin to balk at doing too much for not much reward. If companies want to expand into new markets, products and services, eventually they must hire new workers to make that happen.

As long as companies refuse to hire new workers, their companies—and the economy—will stagnate.

Should You or Shouldn’t You (Apply)?

As a jobless person, you spend most of your days eyeballing several job sites on the web. You carefully read the want ads, looking for something that matches your experience and abilities.

But what if the requirements meet most, but not all of your particular skills sets? Do you not apply? Or do you apply anyway, hoping whoever is hiring will take a chance on you?

This is a tricky question. You don’t want to waste your time or the time of the HR person. However, there are some things you should know about job hunting in 2010.

First, most companies have online submission programs, whereby applicants are chosen based on keywords. Therefore, a real human being may not even see your resume. (Kinda takes the human out of human resources doesn’t it?) What those keywords are depends on the particular company and position looking to be filled.

And sometimes when I read job requirements, I wonder if anybody could conceivably be qualified to fill the position. Seriously, a bilingual computer programmer with a masters in journalism and 10 years of reporting experience at national wire service? All for the top salary of $40K? A friend of mine once sent me an ad for job with the tagline, “Shall I walk on water, too?” What are these companies looking for? An employee or a superhero? Alas, there is probably some smartypants out there who can meet those qualifications. Does that mean the rest of us cannot be employed?

However, I once read an article that quoted an HR person candidly saying that she didn’t expect applicants to meet all requirements for a job. Several times I’ve gone on interviews where the interviewer conceded he or she was not looking for someone who met all the criteria. Bravo.

For instance, I applied for a job at newspaper for bankers. The ad requested someone with financial reporting experience. But during the interview, the editor admitted he was really looking for someone who had general business reporting experience (like me), not necessarily someone who wrote specifically on financial issues. Of course, I didn’t get the job. They hired someone out of college with only an internship behind him.

Considering the surge toward online publishing nowadays in journalism, a major requirement is familiarity with CMS (content management systems). CMS is basically a computer program that allows an editor to input copy so that it appears on a website. Then there is SEO, search engine optimization. SEO enables your articles to pop up on search engines like Google ahead of the pack. But what does that have to do with journalism? Sounds like they want a computer programmer, not a writer.

Now, I myself am familiar with the terms CMS and SEO, but I have not worked with them directly. I’m not a techie, but I have learned computer programs in the past and can do so with proper instruction. Has this held me back? Yes and no.

Some editors have told me point blank that they will only accept someone who has that specific skill, no exceptions. Yet others have said they were willing to train a new hire on CMS. The only way to know if a company takes that particular stance is, well, by applying for the job. Some companies are extremely picky; others not so much.

Being unemployed, should you apply for a job that may be a tad below your professional status? Again, why not? Unless the ad specifically states it’s an entry level position, give it a try. Sometimes the descriptions are a bit vague. It may seem as if the company wants an experienced candidate, but when you interview, it becomes obvious they are looking for a less experienced (and cheaper) applicant.

And let’s face facts here: Since I’ve been out of work for nearly a year, I have to accept the reality that I may have to take a job below what my experience level would dictate. This is no time to be prideful. I need a job.

Look, any HR person has more than enough opportunity to weed out unqualified candidates before a call for an interview is ever made. Another way a company can pare down its list of candidates is via pre-interview phone calls.

In today’s job market, HR departments have to expect an overwhelming number of applicants for any open position. It’s their job to ferret out the qualified candidates.

In any job, there is always a learning curve for a new hire. But companies and supervisors are lazy; they don’t want to train new people. That’s just silly in my opinion. Even if a person has done the exact same job at another company, his or her new firm has different systems and procedures that must be learned by a rookie employee.

Another thorny issue is whether to include your salary requirements, thus taking the chance you may price yourself out of the job. Many times a company will not consider an applicant unless he or she includes a base salary. It's like the company is looking to hire the lowest bidder, not the most qualified.

As someone who has been looking for a job for nearly a year, I will send my resume to any job I think I have a good shot at getting, even if I don’t match all the requirements set out in the employment posting. I have nothing to lose, and quite possibly something to gain—a job.

Yet, over time, I have become more discriminating. Since most of my experience is in trade journalism, I avoid applying for jobs at consumer pubs, even though I believe there is no reason why I couldn’t work at a consumer magazine or website.

After all, I’m not applying to be a brain surgeon. Just someone who can report and write on a variety of topics. I have more than 20 years experience doing that, so why can’t I get hired?

First is Last

One supposed advantage of being unemployed is that scheduling a job interview—rare as that might be—is relatively easy. You don’t have to take time off, rearrange your work schedule or make excuses to your boss. My favorite was that I had a doctor’s appointment. I even used to come in with a Band-Aid on my arm to make it look like I had undergone a blood test. Pretty clever, huh?

But with no job or boss to answer to, I can come in for an interview as soon as the interviewer can see me. But I wonder if that is such an advantage. So far, coming in first has put me last on the hiring pecking order.

Being the first out of the gate can be disadvantage when the HR or the supervisor wants to see as many qualified candidates as possible. It’s hard to argue with the theory that a company shouldn’t hire the first person that comes through the door.

No matter how impressive your experience or how well you did in the interview, chances are slim that any company is going to hire the first person interviewed for a particular job. What’s more, you will suffer in comparison to those that come in after you. Yes, you were a good candidate, but the third-person interviewed was just as qualified and he or she is fresher in the minds of the HR executive when they decide whom to call back for a prized second interview.

Plus, the earlier you can come in for an interview, the more it appears you are an unemployed loser desperate for a job.

Causalities of Recession

Pick up any newspaper or scan any news website and you’ll frequently see articles on the causalities of the recession. Usually such stories focus on the effects of long-term unemployment on individuals and their families as well as society as a whole. Particularly hard hit are those jobless workers over 50, who, apparently, are on the “do not hire” list of nearly all companies.

There are really too many articles to cite. Saddest of all are the ones that tell the story of individuals who have been out of work for over two years: how they are struggling financially and the devastating impact their joblessness is having on their families. These heartbreaking stories indicate how the living standards of the middle class in this country are slowly eroding over time.

It’s not hard to imagine the long-term consequences the Great Recession of 2009-10 is going to have on this country. From what I can gather, there are three:

An Overburdened Social Welfare System. If Congress, now controlled by the GOP in the House, decides it cannot extend unemployment benefits a second time (it did so in July), then jobless people out of work for more than six months (like me) are going to be in deep trouble. What will we do if employers still refuse to increase hiring? Well, it’s pretty obvious we will have to seek financial aid elsewhere, such as food stamps or possibly welfare payments. So by not extending unemployment benefits, Congress will just be passing the buck to another social safety net.

Volunteer groups can pick up some of the slack. But such groups are already overwhelmed by the number of people in need and dwindling donations from formerly employed people.

And what happens if we get sick and are no longer eligible for COBRA benefits? We go to emergency rooms and taxpayers will foot the bill for our treatment. Hospitals will hike charges, pass them along to insurance plans that in turn increase premiums to still employed workers. It’s a vicious cycle.

Unemployment benefits may be the most cost- effective way to preserve the social welfare system now and in the future. Try to get the birdbrains in Congress to understand that.

Impoverished Retirees. Numerous articles highlight the growing ranks of jobless workers who have raided their 401Ks and retirement savings just to survive. It’s not difficult to see how this is going to overwhelm the Social Security program, if not bankrupt it, in the not so distant future. Some politicians talk about doling out Social Security payments on a need-based system, meaning, well-off seniors would not get their Social Security checks. Nothing wrong with that in theory. I have an aunt who collects and Social Security and she has millions in the bank. No lie. Fortunately for her, she does not depend on Social Security, but she gets it anyway.

However, over the next 20 years, very few seniors are going to fit in that category. The vast majority of baby boomers are going to need those Social Security checks because they will have little else to live on. And those checks will barely keep them above the poverty line. Where will they live? How will they pay for their healthcare?

Yes, their children can pitch in. But that means those people—theoretically in their prime earning years—will have less to spend on goods and services. And what if they lose their jobs?

Not a pretty picture of the USA in 2030.

The Loss of Creativity. Productivity may be high now, because still-employed workers are frantically working overtime to make up for the loss of their colleagues. They will do anything to keep their steady paychecks. But while they are working overtime to please their bosses, workers will not take any chances. And only by taking chances can true creativity thrive.

Creativity is also facilitated in a workplace where bosses and workers collaborate to devise new products and services. But when everyone fears the loss of a job, no one is going to rock the boat.

Further, in a workplace where managers are more concerned with protecting their own jobs and power bases, any subordinate who dares question their ideas or authority is sure to be the first to go when layoffs must be undertaken. When you mix the big egos of supervisors and middle managers with job insecurity, it’s look out below! Their underlings will take the fall before they ever do.

The bottom line is this: Workers afraid of losing their jobs are not going to take any risks. But risk-taking is necessary for creativity to flourish in the workplace.

Much has been said about unemployed workers striking out on their own and becoming entrepreneurs. Again, that is a big risk that requires a lot of cash needed more for home mortgages and children’s education. And will those ventures succeed? Will people spend money in a recession on fancy breads?

This recession is a great time for micro-managers for sure. They have their pick of acquiescent worker drones. But not so good for an American business culture that needs innovation to survive in a global marketplace.

Economists say the recession has officially ended. I’m not so sure, but what do I know? I’m not an economist, just an unemployed worker. But I do know this: The impact of this recession is going to be felt for decades.

A Dream Come True?

I went for a job interview this morning. I was there with another woman. She was applying for a graphic artist job; I was there for an editorial position.

We met the head of the department. I sat down on the floor during the interview. The other lady was told she had the job and left the room.

The head of the department told me the job was temporary to begin with, but there was a good chance of it becoming permanent.

The interviewer did say something odd. She said she could never lose weight unless she stopped eating.

She then told me I could start on Wednesday. Yay! I got a job!

Then I woke up. It was a dream. True story.

I’m beginning to wonder if my getting a job ever again is really just another dream that may never come true.