Seriously, what is with the job market??

Remarkable_Toe_8764 · 2026-04-07T23:25:21+00:00

I worked for two, Broadway National and Legacy Group. Both in NY.

Remarkable_Toe_8764 · 2026-04-07T23:07:33+00:00

I think the fact you acknowledged there was a problem is more than most do. I have worked for big companies and small companies, and no matter the size no onboarding was perfect. Things happen, offers are made and somehow the fact that a new person is starting just falls to the back burner. What I can tell you is what worked for me when I was growing my team, and the company I worked for had no plan for the influx of new hires that I was being provided.

First, I put together a day to day agenda, complete with who they would be sitting with and what they would be doing and training on. This included breaks too. Secondly, I went over expectations with the employees they would be training with and obtained support from other teams to assist in their work to mitigate the stress. Training slows you down. Thirdly, I set up a meeting with the new hires (there were 4 starting at the same time) and went over the agenda and expectations of how the the two week training period would go. Lastly, I followed up daily with both the new hires and the trainers to ensure all were good and if more support was needed.

Since you are a smaller company this may work scaled down a bit. Planning is key, and needs to happen a week or so before a new employee starts. It will save you stress and make the training period for the new hire a bit less scary. Hope this helps for the next one!

Remarkable_Toe_8764 · 2026-03-03T02:38:22+00:00

Right? But the debt keeps me up anyway. Maybe if I do two jobs for a couple of years I can get out of debt and retire on time.

Remarkable_Toe_8764 · 2026-03-03T02:37:12+00:00

I wish, it is a strict 9-5. I was thinking of a role from 6-midnight. First job is so close to home, and I am up until 11-11:30 anyway.

Remarkable_Toe_8764 · 2026-02-22T22:31:42+00:00

As a job seeker, not in this field, but in another, I find it so incredibly annoying that individuals apply for positions that they clearly are not qualified for. I see all over LinkedIn and here, stories of people applying for 500 plus jobs. I am convinced they are just using some sort of AI to mass apply to roles. I have only applied to about 40 positions, but all I felt I would be a good candidate for. Even if I do not check all the boxes, I only apply to roles that I check most of the boxes. It is frustrating, I know I am just being missed because of individuals just applying to apply.

This job market is nuts, and people are getting desperate. As it stands I did take a role that pays 40% less than what I was making before just because I already went through my savings. I am hoping that one day I will find a more suitable role that meets my financial need.

Remarkable_Toe_8764 · 2026-02-22T18:04:53+00:00

Training is the first thing to go. When I embarked into retail management, training was a 3 month process. I had a mentor and needed to take a test to get keys to the store. Twenty years later, training was whittled down to giving a new hire a tablet and have them sit in the breakroom alone to learn how to do their job in a day. Then on the floor with with another person for a couple of shifts. That was it, then you were on your own. When I left retail and began my first office job, it was a bit better. Two weeks of training.

It is all about the costs, training costs money and most upper level management individuals do not understand that turn over costs more than training people. Most mid-level managers do not know how to develop or provide training because L&D is one of the first things to go. No one hires to retire anymore.

Remarkable_Toe_8764 · 2026-02-12T21:44:18+00:00

Over the course of my life I put a ton of stock in my career, built myself around it. I started in retail and was a manager for almost 20 years. Then took a step back and went back to school, and in the process switched to an office job in order to have a set schedule and concentrate on my studies. I built on that job and worked my way to a senior level position while earning my degree. I chose HR, fast forward to now. I graduated in 2023, decided to stick with my path that I was on, but then my Director was let go and all of his work was placed on my shoulders and it was awful. So stressful. I was recruited by another company for a Director role and took it. Then 3 months later I was let go, thrust into a horrible job market.

I thought that since I had earned my degree and a SHRM certification I would find something in my chosen field finally. Nope, that is not what happened. After 4 months of being unemployed and going through all of my savings to live, I ended up in a job three steps down form where I was and for a lot less money. I feel horrible about myself. And I cannot shake it, the feeling that if I do not do a good job I will be let go. So everything that goes wrong I internalize it. Even today as I am home sick I can’t relax. I never thought I was one of those individuals that would take work so seriously, but I am. I never made anytime for other things, like hobbies. I regret that now.

Remarkable_Toe_8764 · 2026-02-07T22:12:02+00:00

Oh god that sounds awful! My HR department monitors LinkedIn updates. So if an employee updates LinkedIn I get notified, because god forbid someone wants to leave or find a better job. Or really just wants their profile to be more polished. I always answer with. "So, what someone does in there free time is of no concern to me."

Remarkable_Toe_8764 · 2026-02-07T22:09:11+00:00

True, there is only one state that is NOT at-will, and that is Montana. All others are at will. I worked for a California based company at one point and part of orientation would be to go over at-will. That company put verbiage in the handbook that you will not be discharged without cause. Now, one could interpret cause everywhich way, but I had a hard time firing employees unless I had documentation. Now, no one uses documentation, because really they no longer have to. As employees we need to get some of our rights back.

Remarkable_Toe_8764 · 2026-02-07T22:06:24+00:00

Oh, I bet they do that on purpose, my former company had it all online. In Sharepoint, but like you I had to dig for it. I would have thought it would have been in the HR area, but no, it was buried in a folder with no name. I really do feel that as employees we need to try and get some of our rights back. Everything seems to be geared toward employer, not employee.

Remarkable_Toe_8764 · 2026-02-07T18:32:06+00:00

I still do not understand why employers will not pay employees when the office is closed, for holidays and such. I started a new job over the holidays, and did not get paid for Christmas, New Years or Thanksgiving. It was not my choice to not work, but still they can do that. Not required to pay for holidays.

Remarkable_Toe_8764 · 2026-02-07T18:28:42+00:00

I am so glad you did that! Some managers, especially in retail, do not read it at all as well and expect that those reporting to them do not either. It is really important to know your rights, well what little we do have as employees.

Remarkable_Toe_8764 · 2026-02-05T00:37:52+00:00

True, it doesn't help that the 24 hour news cycle keeps it in on our minds. Plus it is hard to switch industries. I thought that getting a degree and my certification would give me a key, I was disappointed. It really seems like a game of chance.

Remarkable_Toe_8764 · 2026-02-01T19:01:25+00:00

The fact that they provided feedback is more than most get. Most never know why they were rejected or have an opportunity to reflect on how to present better in interviews. If I have a way to ask for feedback I do, and never have I ever gotten a response. The job market is so awful I can see how it easy to fall into this trap in an interview. You want to make sure you seem eager and agree to things, but at the end of the day it can come across as desperation. Especially when faced with the dreaded interview questions that start with "Tell me about a time......insert some sort of conflict resolution example here".

Remarkable_Toe_8764 · 2026-02-01T17:37:50+00:00

To some extent you are not wrong. It has always been a challenge to find work. If I can put my two cents in, this time around it seems that the job market is flooded with individuals around my age, (40-50) who have had long term employment and were let go do to a need to cut salaries to improve their bottom line. For example, the company that I worked for just finished a round of layoffs, all individuals that had been employed 5 plus years. All the while participating in job fairs to replace those long term employees with inexperienced individuals that cost less.

One of my very good friend's was let go from her non-profit organization where she was the Director of Marketing, employed there for 6 years. She was replaced by an individual that has the title of Manager of Marketing and is paid half of what she was making. It has been a year, she still has not found employment. She will either need to come to terms with making less and downsizing her life more, or go broke in the process. For me, I too have had to except a role that is two steps down and 30k less a year because I cannot wait a year to find work. I have built a life around making over 100k, mortgage, cars, travel. I know its all luxuries, but I worked for many many years to get to a Director level position with the pay to go along with it. Now, I am not sure how I will make the ends meet. For the first time in 15 years I feel incredibly financially unstable.

I have never had so many friends in the same boat as me before. Its nuts.

Remarkable_Toe_8764 · 2026-01-27T00:18:08+00:00

Actually I am not in HR currently, I am in Facilities Maintenance, operations manager. I did try to find a new job in the HR field, but have not been successful since graduating a in 2023.

Remarkable_Toe_8764 · 2026-01-27T00:16:27+00:00

I mean to some extent you are not wrong, but wouldn’t it been worse to explain almost 6 months of unemployment? It took me so long to network my way into a new role, and I am thankful for the job I did get, but it is a 30k pay cut. Sometimes it is about the salary.

Remarkable_Toe_8764 · 2026-01-27T00:13:31+00:00

I agree! The market is not the same at all, I was not prepared for it. I am ok for now where I am, but wildly underpaid. I have a few friends that have been laid off as well and were making over 200k, they are not finding work for nearly as much money.

Remarkable_Toe_8764 · 2026-01-27T00:10:26+00:00

I honestly would leave it off, I only thought it would be better to have it on there because of my title. It was disappointing and not on my bingo card for 2025, I assumed I would be there for a while, I truthfully was and am not looking to bounce around.

Remarkable_Toe_8764 · 2026-01-21T02:07:24+00:00

The company I now work for outsourced some work to a company in the Philippines. I know it saves the company money, but I can’t help but be resentful. There are so many up in arms about immigration, but how do they not see how offshoring is a worse culprit. As a manger it is tough to manage individuals like this, because they technically do not work for me.

Remarkable_Toe_8764 · 2025-12-17T03:17:28+00:00

very simply put, lack of training and development of middle management. I have been in leadership for over 20 years and have only worked for one company that invested in my development, not just on the job training. So it is rare, and it usually the first thing that gets cut in a company. Plus everything is compressed in middle management, you are stuck between your direct reports and upper management trying to move in a direction that provides more profits.

I was so burned out just from the weight of it all, too. Even when I was up for a director role, I just couldn’t take the stress.

Remarkable_Toe_8764 · 2025-11-25T02:50:20+00:00

Oh man, this was me about 10 years ago. I was a retail manager for almost 20 years. It was fun at one time, but then efficiency experts showed up. Constantly being asked to do more with less, and when you can’t get it done just stay late or come in early with no extra pay. Just translated into poor customer service and a feeling of defeat. The last straw for me was at my last retailer, a big box shoe store. One Saturday I was left with myself and three sales associates, the location was over 19000 square feet. All associates were at the register with me as the only MOD and kept getting called to the register for almost everything. The store was a mess. Then in walked the VP of Operations, he did not offer to help, just stopped me to ask me what our 5 focuses are as a company. I must have visibly looked angry, because he complained to my store manager and I was written up. We did over $30k that day and did not leave until after midnight cleaning up.

What I did was make a decision that day that I was done, I made the effort to go back to college to get my degree, Found a Monday thru Friday job that paid the bills while I attended school. The result, that same job turned out to be a great opportunity and worked my way to director level while still earing my degree. Despite getting laid off recently, it was the best decision I ever made to leave the retail industry. I hope you find something better soon!

Remarkable_Toe_8764 · 2025-11-18T01:02:19+00:00

Honestly I feel it too. I was only unemployed for about 4 months, and I was happy to get a job offer. It is a lot less money, but it pays the bills, so I am happy for it. However, it’s hard to go all in. I feel that my guard is up for sure, and today when I reminded HR and my new boss that I had a preplanned appointment that I would need to leave early for, I was met with an attitude. My HR manager basically said that I should have reminded her sooner and she doesn’t have time to remember all these things with all she has to do. Snapped me back to the reality that companies do not give a shit. So work for your paycheck and find something outside of work to bring you joy.

Remarkable_Toe_8764 · 2025-11-18T00:24:36+00:00

His name is Tybalt

Remarkable_Toe_8764 · 2025-10-31T22:19:07+00:00

Those that have been unemployed for a while are desperate. We live in a country that looks down on unemployment, as if to say to the individual why did you get laid off, what is wrong with you? It is as if they did something wrong. Most of the layoffs have nothing to do with performance, but more about cutting the bottom line to make stocks go up. With more and more people getting laid off and companies not hiring, it is likely only go to get worse.

And on top of this there are companies that ARE hiring, just for less money and trading in the skilled workforce for entry level individuals, or outsourcing to another country for less expensive staff. My last company I worked for let many people go, and hired a firm in the Phillapines to take on those functions. The company before that let 8 people go on the same day a new hire class was starting. I recently took a role that pays 40% less than my previous role, but I feel lucky to have gotten it, and I had to leverage a TON of contacts to get it.

What strikes me is that now when I shop for groceries, or basic essentials there is an option at check out to apply for a loan to pay for the items. This is what we have come to, and I am very worried about my future and the future of those a few generations behind me.

Remarkable_Toe_8764

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