“The job market is trash!” I am not making that statement up. The majority of job seekers, especially on YouTube, are saying this. Many say, “It’s because of AI.” However, I am somewhat skeptical about this since I have heard of companies doing “AI washing.”
After having done much observation and after having watched YouTube news documentaries, I am convinced that some of the layoffs and hiring freezes are because companies overhired post-pandemic. But there’s much, much more to the sluggish job market than that!
Part of it is America’s Economy is in a Recession
Well, we’d officially be in a recession were it not for all of that mega investing in the companies that make AI tools. That may help explain why so many candidates, especially new college graduates, have put in hundreds (sometimes thousands) of applications. Then they land a handful of interviews where the panel often has them work on free projects.
If they are lucky, they may land 1-2 offers. But more often than not, they are ghosted. The unfortunate reality is that these companies tend to use their work without compensating or crediting them for it.
Things Look Deceptively Good
The job market looks red hot right now if you look at the numbers. But remember what Mark Twain once said about there being lies, damn lies, and then statistics? That quote applies here. Unemployment is currently at 4.3%. It’s slightly below the decade-long average rate of 4.6%.
It’s definitely better than the 5-decade-long average of 6.1%. Also, the American economy added a record number of jobs in April and May. But you wouldn’t know that by talking to someone in the tech industry. That sector is going through a real nightmare scenario from the firing and hiring standpoints.
Employers added 115,000 new jobs, and that was just for the month of April.
The Thing is that Most Americans Don’t Work in the Red-Hot Industries
Healthcare is red hot right now. Why? People are always going to get sick. About 57,500 of April’s new jobs were in the Allied healthcare sectors. The remainder were generated in low-end sectors: retail, transportation, and warehousing. The issue is that these jobs often go unfilled for months at a time.
Candidates always complain that they can’t afford to live on the ‘starvation wages’ that these jobs provide. That’s why they don’t bother applying for these jobs, even if they’re desperate. And can you blame them? They would have to work 2-3 of these jobs full-time to pay their bills. Nobody human can do that!
Then there is the fact that they would be constantly looking out for new positions since AI pundits promise that Agentic AI will be replacing a lot of retail, transportation, and warehousing positions in a few years.
A Lot of Jobs Have Been Automated
Guess what the culprit is? If you said, “AI!” you’re not partially wrong. Companies that automate can get more done with fewer resources and workers. So, they lay off. Unfortunately, they are not hiring for new positions right now. So, there are more candidates applying for either the same number of or fewer positions.
That helps explain part of the reason why the job market seems to be ‘trash’ right now.
DOGE Didn’t Help Any
Remember Donald Trump’s DOGE as a way to ‘cut the fat’ in the American government? Well, the effects of the cuts are still being felt. There are 350,000 fewer positions that candidates can apply for as compared to two years ago.
It may not be your imagination if you’re struggling to find a job in a local or state government agency. You’re competing with hundreds of laid-off federal workers for these jobs.
Then There is ATS
We have an interesting situation in recruiting now. Candidates mass apply to positions using AI tools. They use ChatGPT or Claude to fire of dozens of applications, cover letters, and resumes to different positions.
That overwhelms hiring departments and forces human resources to use AI tools to sift through and filter out these documents. They use ATS. They’re AI-driven tools that scan resumes and even cover letters based on a few keywords. Don’t have those keywords on your resume or cover letter? Both are automatically tossed, even if you’d be a perfect fit for the position.
The key is to optimize your resume. Include the right keywords, but focus on how your accomplishments would help the company you’re trying to work for. Don’t say, “reduced costs by 10% while managing a team of 50 people” even if you really did that.
Say, “I helped my former employer become more competitive and more flexible by identifying where costs could be substantially cut in Production and Operations Management while rolling out new products to market by managing a team of 50 people.” Then, you’ll get somewhere.
The Job Market is Evolving
It’s a sign of the times, no cliches or puns intended. AI is here to stay, and it’s permanently changing how we live and work. The sluggish and perhaps trashy job market is just one sign of that. You’ve got to adjust. One way is to do that is to deliver your application and other documents exactly the way employers want.
