Plug Away

In three years since I was laid-off due to a reduction in force (RIF), I have found sporadic income, which I attributed to a skills mismatch and the economic environment following the “great recession.”

In reference to the former, I have sought to close the skills mismatch gap. I have accomplished more and learned more in the past three years than I did in the three prior years for which I am proud.  However, I am not proud that my family is worse off financially due to me earning wages sporadically via gigs vs. steady, on-going wages via full-time employment.

I am not alone, as I know others in a similar situation. Seeking answers, I delved into data provided by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) of the U.S. Department of Labor. I retrieved “employed persons by detailed industry and age” within “household data, annual averages” for years 2011 through 2017.  While it is highly detailed (over 400 different job categories), I focused on total employment by age.  The following chart shows my findings.

There are three columns for each age group: those employed in 2011, 2017 and the change (∆).  All age groups with the exception of the one in which I reside, 45 to 54, showed gains. The data validated what I believed. More specifically, older workers such as myself are passed over for a myriad of reasons, one being the cost of providing benefits, namely healthcare, which would also explain why those 65 and older saw big gains, these individuals have Medicare negating the need for company sponsored healthcare. I went to bed that night in a slightly better state of mind.

Intuitively, I knew the chart above did not tell the whole story; people age-in and age-out of groups.  To adjust my data for this flux, I adjusted the results above using total population data provided by the census bureau to obtain a ratio of employed:total population by age.  The following chart shows my findings.

Whoa! All age groups have had job gains. I painfully concluded, “The fault … is not in [my] stars, but in [myself]” (Shakespeare 1.2.142-143). The first day, I was in a funk.  I tried to cheer myself up by saying the good news with my findings is that I have more control over my fate than I led myself to believe.  Sadly, the second day did not get better; I yelled at myself – to fix me, change the way I think, how I prioritize, etc. On the third day still in disbelief I recalled a quote attributed to James Allen, a British author, “Work joyfully and peacefully, knowing that the right thoughts and right efforts inevitably bring about the right results.” In short, I must continue to plug away.  In the process, maintain optimism while learning new skills and marketing myself more effectively.