Poll Reveals Trauma of Joblessness in U.S.

[SoCalDem]

Poll Reveals Trauma of Joblessness in U.S.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/15/us/15poll.html
By MICHAEL LUO and MEGAN THEE-BRENAN
Published: December 14, 2009

More than half of the nation’s unemployed workers have borrowed money from friends or relatives since losing their jobs. An equal number have cut back on doctor visits or medical treatments because they are out of work.

For Many, Uncertainty, Fear and Shame Often Follow Pink Slips (December 15, 2009)

Almost half have suffered from depression or anxiety. About 4 in 10 parents have noticed behavioral changes in their children that they attribute to their difficulties in finding work. Joblessness has wreaked financial and emotional havoc on the lives of many of those out of work, according to a New York Times/CBS News poll of unemployed adults, causing major life changes, mental health issues and trouble maintaining even basic necessities.

The results of the poll, which surveyed 708 unemployed adults from Dec. 5 to Dec. 10 and has a margin of sampling error of plus or minus four percentage points, help to lay bare the depth of the trauma experienced by millions across the country who are out of work as the jobless rate hovers at 10 percent and, in particular, as the ranks of the long-term unemployed soar. Roughly half of the respondents described the recession as a hardship that had caused fundamental changes in their lives. Generally, those who have been out of work longer reported experiencing more acute financial and emotional effects.

“I lost my job in March, and from there on, everything went downhill,” said Vicky Newton, 38, of Mount Pleasant, Mich., a single mother who had been a customer-service representative in an insurance agency. “After struggling and struggling and not being able to pay my house payments or my other bills, I finally sucked up my pride,” she said in an interview after the poll was conducted. “I got food stamps just to help feed my daughter.” Over the summer, she abandoned her home in Flint, Mich., after she started receiving foreclosure notices. She now lives 90 minutes away, in a rental house owned by her father.

With unemployment driving foreclosures nationwide, a quarter of those polled said they had either lost their home or been threatened with foreclosure or eviction for not paying their mortgage or rent. About a quarter, like Ms. Newton, have received food stamps. More than half said they had cut back on both luxuries and necessities in their spending. Seven in 10 rated their family’s financial situation as fairly bad or very bad. But the impact on their lives was not limited to the difficulty in paying bills. Almost half said unemployment had led to more conflicts or arguments with family members and friends; 55 percent have suffered from insomnia.

“Everything gets touched,” said Colleen Klemm, 51, of North Lake, Wis., who lost her job as a manager at a landscaping company last November. “All your relationships are touched by it. You’re never your normal happy-go-lucky person. Your countenance, your self-esteem goes. You think, ‘I’m not employable.’ ”


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[johnlucas]

1. In other words, these people have just discovered the Illusion of "Middle Class"

Hmm, I wonder what that woman's, Vicky Newton's, views were about the welfare system & food stamps before she had to apply for them.
Something tells me not a positive one. Just a lingering suspicion.

The "Middle Class" are finally realizing that they are one & the same with "The Poor".
I hope they remember that reality once a little change adorns their pockets again.

John Lucas

[Missy Vixen]

2. We went through eight months of unemployment earlier this year

I'm not throwing rocks at any of these people. They are suffering a hell I wouldn't wish on my worst enemy.

>I hope they remember that reality once a little change adorns their pockets again.<

So, in other words, those of us who lost a job and couldn't find another for quite some time are going to immediately forget the experience? What about those of us who actually gave a shit about those who don't have as much before this even happened?

:eyes:

[undeterred]

3. You are passing judgment.

What gives you the right to judge someone going through hard times?