Posted on 08/07/2014 6:54:00 AM PDT by SeekAndFind
Entry-level work isn't what it used to be.
Companies bruised by the recession have stayed lean by automating and outsourcing core functions while slashing training budgets and payrolls. But in an effort to cut costs, some companies also have cut entry-level jobs that serve as a crucial first step on the path to a professional career. And others have made the responsibilities for first-timers more sophisticated, raising the bar for new graduates, who are expected to arrive job-ready from day one.
These developments may be making it more difficult for some young adults to gain a foothold in the labor market, economists say. The unemployment rate for people 20- to 24-years-old is falling as the economy recovers, but remained at a historically high 11.3% in July. Young adults lacking college degrees are having an especially hard time finding entry-level jobs.
(Excerpt) Read more at online.wsj.com ...
They want job ready - but not too much experience.
No wonder they can’t find people to fill their jobs, they’re looking for unicorns.
That is pretty much an unreasonable expectation. Entry level implies that the employee is ready to go to work and LEARN the job and its requirements, not be proficient from day one. This excuse makes it easier for them to exclude American college grads and to justify hiring H1Bs with some level of experience into entry level positions.
Pure BS. It is easier to hire guest workers or illegal aliens who get lower pay and can be controlled easier by the companies. They couldn't do that unless we had a surplus of labor--and we do.
Many companies have made the determination that they no longer have the time nor the budget to teach - anything.
Employers are taking advantage of the situation, to pay entry-level salaries to experienced people.
Improve job opportunities and this will go away.
Entry work is the easiest stuff to offshore. Even lawyer firms are offshoring the grunt work newly hired associates used to do.
That’s the essence of the problem. Businesses don’t want to spend a dime in training, despite the fact their long term costs would be lower because they wouldn’t be paying taxes on a huge educational bureaucracy and workers would be immediately productive and you could pay them according to their ability to produce.
Thus mentality is actually costing them money.
Majors in Women’s studies, African American studies .... Basically any liberal arts need not apply.
So what are young college graduates to do? Perhaps their best bet is to do internships and summer jobs when possible in their career fields? Then that way, they can say they already have some experience in their career field? Just a thought.
Majors in Women’s studies, African American studies .... Basically any liberal arts need not apply.
Very true. Why would anyone major in women’s studies? The study of women may be fascinating, but, there are no jobs in the job market for studying women. Thus the degree has only academic value, not employment value.
They’re kidding themselves. They still have to train the H1Bs, they don’t come in knowing the company specific operations and policies. Requirements and technology changes and the requirements to be successful in whatever endeavor is dynamic, rarely static. Training and retraining are essential for long-term success.
Whatever happened to starting in the mail room?
No wonder they can’t find people to fill their jobs, they’re looking for unicorns.
And the new graduates think they're ready to be CEOs...it's a perfect fit. lol
There are plenty of people out there looking for work. It’s a buyer’s market, you might say. I think they’re finding plenty of qualified applicants.
Paid internships during the summer instead of a vacation or waiting tables are a good way to create experienced workers.
For a entry level job running a cash register, a person must know how to count change. Today’s kids coming out of HS can’t even do that.
They totally rely on the cash register to tell them, and if you throw in the odd cents to round up, at the last moment, they have no clue what to do. Today’s kids can’t even read cursive in many states. And I’m tired of having to print out crap for them it is more painful to my arthritic hands than cursive is.
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