I wrote a semi-viral essay and understand why people feel too ashamed to talk about unemployment
It was six on a Saturday morning when the article was published.
Not the most inspiring time for a personal essay to be put on the front page of a website. It would almost seem like an ideal time to bury an essay.
Nevertheless, I felt a sense of relief that this personal piece was stashed away on the corner of a website where readers’ tired morning eyes would glaze over as their fingers scrolled through headlines.
It’s counterintuitive to want a piece you’ve written publicly not to be consumed by readers, but although I sensed it was a topic that could resonate, I also knew it was one the public seemed impassive toward.
Copy link. LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram. Paste link. The obligatory distribution to socials, done.
I carry on with my day but click on the website a little later that morning, and see my face on the number one spot. My hesitancy about the essay being released is put a little at ease now that I know a few people are reading it.
Ping. Ping. Ping.
The DM’s, reshares and comments start to come in. The frequency of my phone pinging and vibrating make me a bit restless throughout the day. The constant physical interruptions from my phone keeps short-circuiting my train of thought throughout the day.
The messages on my pages are incredibly encouraging and supportive. Then two messages from friends land in my inbox.
“Don’t look at the comments.” It’s a warning I don’t heed.
The comments aren’t anything unusual when it comes to negative social media comments. I even complain to my sister about how unoriginal and boring they seem to be. They’re not anything unexpected from someone working in the news where certain audiences go to great pains to make it known that they don’t like you.
Yet, they keep coming through. Former colleagues and friends who shared the essay are dealing with comments on their pages about me and how I “should leave the country” or how I “deserve to be out of a job” all based on my career choices. Others tell me not to be lazy and go pick apples (which I’m sure if I did I’d then get accused of taking other people’s jobs).
Warned to not take the comments personally, I don’t, but I am bemused by how ignorant people are about the state of the economy and what the essay was about.
It is an essay bemoaning a recession that is greater than the people affected, the need to leave to be able to survive, and ultimately NOT be a burden on the taxpayer. It also reminds me how the stigma around unemployment and towards those who are unemployed is still a steadfast ideology held by a large group of people.
The stigma of someone not ‘wanting to work’ or ‘stealing’ from others because they don’t want to do a hard and an honest day’s work.
I could appreciate why job seekers feel ashamed and judged for not being able to find work and why they clam up and hide away keeping their employment status a secret. The abuse which is laid on publicly by people can be thick.
I was surprised by the amount of people who messaged me to thank me for the essay because it mirrored their experience. Knowing they weren’t the only ones who weren’t getting work made them relieved to know they weren’t alone.
To think I was one of the only people who had so publicly “outed” myself for struggling to find work in a job draught was a little disheartening. To read stories about people quietly blaming themselves for circumstances outside their hands was saddening.
I shouldn’t be the outlier. People shouldn’t have to hide the fact they are looking for work or feel like a failure. The narrative needs to change. And I hold out hope it will and that I’m not the last one to talk about this.
But now the conversation has started, I would love to hear from you about why you think the stigma of being unemployed is still so strong. Leave me a comment below.
To cure my boredom and feelings of lack of purpose I thought I’d write about my journey with finding full-time work. From the mistakes I’ve made to the ups and downs. I may not be consistent (especially writing on here where no one’s likely to read this) but as long as I have the motivation I’ll try and write my thoughts here.