I don't mean to add to the gloom. There are strategies to get work, even after long periods of unemployment. It does NOT mean being doomed to a McJob. The key, as always, is the candidate being able to demonstrate he/she has VALUE to bring to the job, not merely asking for a charitable handout. Work does NOT always mean being employed by someone else; many folks can and do make a living working as craftsmen, sales people, consultants, handymen, etc.
Sometimes, those "make do" money earners can turn into something bigger. Back in 2004, in the thread,
Tips to get Past the Gatekeeper, I wrote about my neighbor:
Being methodical may be the right way to find a job but it does not help to make the house payment as it rapidly approaches due time.
Yep. This is a tough reality. It is difficult to be scintillating and charming on paper and in person during an interview when your stomach is rumbling because you are hungry and you worry if you can afford enough gas in your car to get back and forth to an interview. Sometimes you have to make compromises or expend extra energy to take care of yourself and family during a transition. It may mean taking a job as a night clerk in a gas station or convenience store so you can continue your job search and interviews during the day.
I live in what's laughingly called an "upscale" neighborhood, but one of my neighbors lost an executive job and turned to driving a limousine nights and weekends to stretch his savings while he searched for a new position.
He learned so much about this "make do" job, he changed his plans and now owns a fleet of four limousines and is negotiating to merge with another limo company. He is not embarrassed about what he does and most of us in the neighborhood find it convenient to hire one of his limos to go to and from the airport as we pursue our "upscale" careers. Sometimes, when life hands you lemons, you find some sugar and make lemonade.
The update, nine years later, is that he sold his corporation and its fleet of TWENTY limousines and splits his retirement between northern Illinois and the Gulf Coast of Florida.
Finally, just to put things in perspective, never think about putting down union membership again. The New York Times reports members of the New York Stagehands union can make upwards of $500,000/year. (
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/12/28/a...l=1&adxnnlx=1388352287-kgGs87A3cnhRzN0V2PBmAw)