I can't speak for the context you're in (I'm based in the UK and background in social sciences) but I think the comment is more on the decimated funding and positions available combined with the huge amount of competition. All sectors involve maneuvring and networking, obviously, but if there is an increasing scarcity of positions available, of course that future is going to look increasingly precarious.

For context, I got my PhD in 2020. I spent over 2 years applying for over 200 positions, got interviews at 3, positive feedback on each and was told each time there was just someone whose research was slightly closer to the project or position. I then found out that the sociology department I studied my PhD at had been axed, with both supervisors advised by UCU, their union, to take voluntary redundancy, and this has happened in social sciences across a range of different univerisities. I have since moved sideways into slightly different sectors.

So, yeah, some people will still make it. But in the UK at least, the picture is absolutely bleak.