The Tail End an ill equipped Job Market

01/28/2023

By Dr. Bahiyya Baskerville

For many, 2022 was a harsh reality on the various employment woes resulting in high employment rates, financial instability, and uncontrollable worries. Work life grew into something of a new abnormality, a sort of indifference and unfamiliarity with what lies ahead. Those faced with these stressors looked toward 2023 to embrace a prosperous new year. Unfortunately, this was quickly dismantled by prospective market place recessions that will not fall short of slow hiring processes, employment cuts, and issues such as quiet quitting due to increased stress, productivity demands, and lack of connection to employee burnout. We've seen this first hand with big giants such as Google who went through mass layoffs.

What we are seeing is a preview of a job market that continues to regenerate itself but with each attempt, grows more weary and less resilient to changes. The lingering effects of the pandemic have recreated environments that are more focused on work overload, mismatched responsibilities and low morale. Managers and organizations alike are facing compassion fatigue and reduced work life balance despite efforts to obtain talent with remote work, which has only added to employee stress due to new innovative technological advancements increasing computer time, productivity time, and imposed hours.

So what is the tail end of it all? A problematic employment market filled with suspicions, paranoia, micromanaging, and inability to maintain structure and stability. The tail end of it all is usually the result of toxicity pushed down the pipeline. Organizations can decrease many barriers by engaging and connecting with employees, being open and honest about their fears, and joining in when times get rough in preference to "barking orders" or always criticizing.

In the end, organizations must not only generate what is profitable but what is amicable and creates trustworthiness and a sense of meaningfulness.

References

Dhue, S., & Epperson, S. (2023, January 6). After job cuts, here's how leaders can boost layoff survivor morale and productivity. CNBC. Retrieved from https://www.cnbc.com/2023/01/06/after-job-cuts-how-to-boost-layoff-survivor-morale-and-productivity.html

Richardson, C. (2008). WORKING ALONE: The Erosion of Solidarity in Today’s Workplace. New Labor Forum (Sage Publications Inc.), 17(3), 68–78.

Smith, M. (2023, January 26). Hiring slowdowns, manager burnout and other trends that will shape U.S. workplaces in 2023, experts say. CNBC. Retrieved from https://www.cnbc.com/2023/01/26/the-top-work-trends-that-will-dominate-the-us-in-2023.html