(Dmytro “Henry” Aleksandrov, Headline USA) A new labor market survey shows Americans have rarely felt more in need of new job opportunities, indicating that over 28% are currently looking for a new job.
The New York Federal Reserve’s latest consumer poll found that 28.4% of respondents were looking for a job—the highest reading since March 2014 and up from 19.4% a year ago. That includes people who don’t have a job and those who are currently employed but seeking a new and better position.
NBC News reported that the readings from the New York Fed’s thrice-annual Survey of Consumer Expectations Labor Market Survey indicate that the American economy is getting worse. The current unemployment rate is 4.3%, up from its “post-pandemic low” of 3.5%.
The new survey found that expectations of losing one’s job also hit a record. The average expected likelihood of losing your job rose to 4.4%, up from 3.9% a year ago and the highest level ever recorded for the survey, which dates back to 2014.
“It’s hard to find data moving in the right direction. The best you can say is that some data are in a good spot and not getting worse. But most data points are, on average, moving slowly in the wrong direction,” Guy Berger, director of economic research at the Burning Glass Institute, said.
According to the New York Fed, the increase in job searchers was most pronounced among respondents older than 45, those without a college degree, and those with an annual household income less than $60,000.
Rick Goins, a 64-year-old Houston resident with decades of communications experience, is among the people struggling to find a new job. He said he has not had a full-time role since 2016, managing only to get hired for contractor positions. In 2020, Goins secured a contractor role that lasted nearly two years but ended this February.
“I’m not old enough to retire [or] for Medicare. I want to keep my skills up … I’ve got a lot left in the tank,” he said, adding that he’d lost count of how many times potential employers ignored him during an interview process.
