By Taylor Navarro
Young Australians are finding it increasingly difficult to make a living, and it’s not going to get any easier.
There are many common stereotypes that have been tacked onto the emerging generations. Growing up in a completely different world, it’s completely understandable that misunderstandings have been making their way into the generational gaps; misunderstandings that we’re lazy, lack initiative, persistence and the ‘proper’ working profile. However, outstanding working profile or not, there are three things to note:
1. The job market is only big on the outside.
You would think with the rise of online job search programs like Seek, Indeed, Jora, etc., employment would become unquestionably accessible, and even more efficient. But many applicants report that it doesn’t matter how many times they apply. They hardly hear back, if ever.
Did you know that 80% of young Australian jobseekers have experienced ghosting in 75% of their job applications?
2. Two to three years experience required.
Unless you know someone who knows someone, you’ll have to do the grunt work to find yourself in a comfortable spot among the other thousands of applicants for the same job. But grunt work means that you need experience, and to get experience, you need a job. But to get a job, you need experience!
Young people are just entering the workforce. To expect them to have relevant experience the second that they step into the working world is to expect them to have been working their whole life.
Are we raising children or capitalist slaves?
3. ‘Poly-employment.’
With full-time jobs becoming more and more like exclusive clubs, young people are resorting to working multiple casual or part-time jobs to make ends meet. This is not sustainable— not mentally, physically or emotionally, and could be hinting at an impending economic collapse if there are more people resorting to unstable work rather than holding out for a full time job.
Overall, young Australians are trying. But the thing is, young Australians aren’t the problem. It’s the system. But that begs the question…
Do the problems lie in it being outdated… or disruptive?
And will we meet in the middle?