Job Losses in U.S. Spreading to Workers With College Degrees

[babylonsister]

Job Losses in U.S. Spreading to Workers With College Degrees

By Courtney Schlisserman


Feb. 6 (Bloomberg) -- In this recession, not even an education can shield you from losing your job.

The unemployment rate among workers with college degrees rose to 3.8 percent, the highest level since records began in 1992, the Labor Department reported today. The rate for workers with some college or an associate’s degree also climbed to a record, at 6.2 percent.

“This particular recession is hitting workers with more levels of schooling harder than past recessions have hit them,” said Heidi Shierholz, an economist at the Economic Policy Institute, a Washington research group typically aligned with the labor movement. “It’s just a deeper recession, it’s more widespread, its tentacles are reaching everywhere.”

According to EPI data, the level of unemployment among people with college educations is the highest since January 1983. With banks merging and manufacturers like Caterpillar Inc. eliminating management positions, the ranks of college-educated unemployed may continue to grow, economists said.

“This is a deeper recession and it has really accelerated over the last several months,” said Christine Owens, executive director of the National Employment Law Project. “There will be income losses throughout the economy.”

more...

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=as64xRuHuEKQ&refer=home

[Xipe Totec]

1. Spreading?

I have a friend with a PhD in molecular genetics and 20 years experience who just spent two years on the bench looking for a job, living off his life savings...

[babylonsister]

2. Then he started it...

;)

Maybe with the new emphasis on science he'll have better luck; sounds like he's certainly qualified and I imagine his knowledge would be considered valuable. That doesn't mean all college grads are in the same boat unfortunately.

[Muttocracy]

3. is molecular biology being outsourced now too?

I know it's gotten more and more automated. More productivity, fewer jobs.

[Xipe Totec]

6. Yes, actually.

Spot on.

[Manifestor_of_Light]

4. Spreading? What took 'em so long????

Hell, I have a Juris Doctor (standard law degree, 90 semester hours of class time), a B.A. in biology and an A.A. in Court reporting.

My court reporting job drained away back in 1995, and I have been unable to get any paralegal or legal assistant jobs since then. I had a few crappy temporary jobs (entering gas leases into a database), and some sucky retail jobs. I spent over 2 years looking for a legal assitant job back around 2005, and got a grand total of ONE interview. :banghead:


My friend has a B.S. and M.S. in Physics/Math, and he hasn't had a decent job since he got laid off at the beginning of 1993 from an oilfield supply firm. The boss was scared to death that the economy would tank since Bill Clinton got elected. He went back to school and got a Music and Video Business degree from one of those overpriced ripoff proprietary schools that advertises heavily. He thought he could change careers. It did absolutely nothing to help him get a job, and he didn't even learn anything at that school he didn't already know from doing video and audio recording. He got canned from his crappy job, shooting video, not getting overtime, etc. in 2006, since they were busy firing everybody they could and running up a huge deficit.

:wtf:

It's been 16 years for my friend, and 14 for me since I had a decent job. We both have plenty of skills. Our standards are far higher than those of our former employers.


These people are in a fantasy world. This crap has been going on for over a decade.

:grr: :nuke: :rant: :nuke: :grr: :rant: :grr: :nuke: :rant: :nuke: :grr: :nuke: :rant:



And it's NOT MY FAULT EITHER, DAMMIT! The JOBS are NOT there!!!

[TahitiNut]

9. "This crap has been going on for over a decade." Amen!!!

Absolutely. And for anyone over 50, it's GRIM. Really grim. ("Overqualified" is the euphemism for ageism.)

[A-Long-Little-Doggie]

5. No shit

Says this BS/MBA. And I am seeing folks with MS and Phd's at my seminars at the unemployment office.Lots of "experienced" people, if you know what I mean. The resume writing experts are helping us all dumb down our resumes to get past the automatic resume dump because we are overqualified.

Lots of quiet desparation going on...

[lumberjack_jeff]

7. On one hand, I hate stories like this.

"Job losses spreading to white folks too!"

On the other hand, if it helps to bring people's attention to the real world, it may have its place.

[Adsos Letter]

8. OT, but...

missed ya' lately babylonsister! :hi:

[babylonsister]

10. ...

:pals: Thanks, Adsos! I missed you and DU!

[backscatter712]

11. YO!

Bachelors of Computer Science here, and unemployed!