Job Market Dropout

A few weeks ago I listened to a story on NPR (National Public Radio) about the U.S. jobless rate.  The Labor Department reported that our nation’s unemployment rate moved down to 7.6 percent in March, the lowest rate in 4 years.  However, this is not the good news it would seem to be.  There were expectations for 200,000 net new jobs, but only 88,000 materialized.  So why did the jobless rate decline?  It declined because almost a half million people dropped out of the labor force.  That’s right—nearly 500,000 people stopped working or looking for work.

I understand this because several months ago I stopped looking for work, too.  Why?  Pure frustration and a feeling of hopelessness.  There aren’t many jobs in Idaho and a large number of the jobs we have are low paying.  (Idaho has the highest percentage of minimum wage jobs in the country.)  When I moved to Idaho nearly 30 years ago, I had left a job which paid the equivalent of $10 per hour—and that was not considered to be a particularly good wage.  All these years later I see many jobs, often requiring experience, advertised at that same wage or less.  The sad truth is that the majority of Idaho jobs do not pay a living wage.  I looked diligently for a job for over a year, sometimes coming very close.  At one of the last interviews that I had, I was told that I was in the top four out of 150 applicants.  I didn’t get the job—close, but not close enough.  I am fairly certain that my age is working against me, but I can’t prove it.  Of course, we could use the money.  We are living off my husband’s retirement while trying to help a daughter who has been struggling to make it and is now also unemployed.

I felt like I was beating my head against a wall to get a low-paying job that I didn’t really want.  Where are the good paying, interesting, challenging jobs?  Where are the jobs, period?  I remember reading that the definition of insanity is to continue to do the same thing and expect different results.

It was time to do something different—time to explore.  I decided to broaden my volunteer activities and make some commitments, something I couldn’t do while job hunting.  I have been helping in a political party office and soon I’ll be volunteering at the zoo.  I hope to find a project at the foodbank.  Of course, I continue to volunteer at my church.  Some people have suggested that I might find a job by volunteering, but, to be honest, my goal is to simply make a contribution to my community.

My second goal has been to stretch myself through classes and experimentation.  The creative side of me has been squelched for too long.  I have taken some classes on glass fusion—the colors are delightful and bring out an almost child-like joy in me.  I’m currently taking a class about drawing and painting from nature; we’re learning about using sketchbooks and journals.  I’m looking forward to going out and trying what I’ve learned.

Where will this lead me?  I don’t know at this point.  Perhaps I’ll attempt to re-enter the job market in another year—with a new point of view and perhaps some new skills.  Or perhaps I’ll decide I’m retired and find fulfillment entirely in volunteer work.  Perhaps I’ll become an artist.  Who knows?  In the meantime, I’ll be exploring.