Meet Jadelyn in HR

I decided to kick off this entry by sharing a few messages left on the Over Fifty and Out of Work page, mostly as a courtesy for those who are still completely clueless about what the economy and job market have been like for so many of us since 2008. I frequented this site daily, as it was helpful to see that I was not the only one in this deplorable situation.

At 54 and unemployed for 5 years now, I know I'll never work again (I've applied for 500 or so jobs). My student loans went default 2 years ago - $300,000.00 of them. No, I didn't borrow that much, it went from $101,000.00 to $220,000.00 over 12 years even as I paid what I could. Then the collection agency charged me a $80,000.00 "collection" fee and sent it to the IRS for ultimate collection (they did nothing but make phone calls at all times of the day and night). Because of that my credit is destroyed, I've used up all my savings and can't even get a job at a convenience store. I graduated with a M.S. in Biology with a 3.80 GPA and I spent 4 years in the Marines in the late 80s (the GI bill didn't exist then - it was called the VEAP and only paid $5700.00 total for 4 years). So much for serving your country. Now because of my credit I can't get a job, and because I can't get a job I can never repair my credit. You can't discharge student loans, you can't refinance them, you can't get a job, and because I can’t get a job I can never repair my credit. You can’t discharge student loans, you can’t refinance them, you can’t get a government job with defaulted student loans, and they’ll take as much of your SSN as they can, if there’s any left when I get to “retirement” age…wait, I am retired – retired from the life against my will. In this country it’s all about money. ALL about money. Once you can no longer make money for someone, or someone can’t make money off of you, you’re tossed aside, a liability to be ignored. I never thought I’d live to see a day when I couldn’t get a job…any job. I don’t mean to be rude, but the guy at the store can’t count change correctly and I’m sitting on my hands all day, every day, for 5 years. Two of my references are dead, so even when I do apply I only have 2 people to back up my employment, and that only goes back 10 years. I no longer have a car, the bus doesn’t run where I live (not that I could afford it), I haven’t been to the dentist in 6 years, I can’t afford to have the tests most people in this country should have in their 50s, so who knows what my health really is. If I get sick I just do the best I can. My wife works 2 jobs just to get us by, and I have to watch her suffer for me, for something she had nothing to do with at all. I have no hope, no future, zilch. To hell with everyone who says “it’ll get better.” I’m so sick of hearing that I want to scream. Sorry to say, but I don’t give a shit what happens to this country or its people. It’s amazing that I’m not a drunk, drug addict, criminal, or haven’t committed suicide yet. My wife and I live in fear of losing the little that we have at any instant. If you’re not terminally ill or in prison, you have it better than me. How is that for a story? I’m sure you won’t print it because it doesn’t fit into your reform, “It’ll get better” narrative. Bitter? You’re damn right I am. I truly don’t care what happens to the people of this country or the country itself. We claim to be so great…go take your flag waving somewhere else.  – posted June 20 2016

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I was laid off from my job in October 2014...I have held a job since I was 16. I am now 53 and feel like society has cast me aside. I have kept my skills up to date, went back to school a few years ago and earned a degree, but no one will hire me. The only jobs I have been offered pay $9-$10 per hour. I am a single mom. I can’t survive on the salary that a teenager just graduating from high school would be paid. I have managed to pick up some work from home doing consulting, but nothing long term. Because there are few jobs where I live, I have started to look for jobs that can be done from home. Tons of the tech start ups hire remote workers. These companies like to post photos of their employees. Take a look sometimes. While their ethnicity is mixed, the ages are not. Typically their oldest employee looks 30. My whole life I have worked with people of all ages, but these start ups act like anyone over 30 would screw up their new age way of working and turn them into a no fun zone.

It is demoralizing. Although I know it is not the end of the world, I totally understand now why some people go crazy when they lose a job. I go to the unemployment office and watch people who seem totally incompetent try to help me find a job. They always end up saying things like: Well, it looks like you are doing everything you can.” I had one lady take notes while I was telling her the various ways I look for jobs. Yet she has a job and I can’t find one. I know I have valuable skills. If I had any money I would start a business because I know I have the brains to succeed, but I have gone through every bit of money I have, my credit is now ruined and I will soon have to go to family to ask for money. Experience used to mean something. Now it just means you are old. – posted March 23, 2015

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I have nothing but sympathy for everyone in here who is struggling. I'm in the same exact boat. I'm 50 and I live at home with two elderly parents on a fixed income. Right now, I have $23.00 to my name. I no longer have a car, all of my savings are gone, and I haven't had a steady job since 2011. I've mainly been employed by staffing agencies. I've never been so scared in all of the days of my life. I simply don't know what to do. I don't qualify for unemployment or welfare. I've repeatedly attended college, trying to update my skills, but that doesn't help whatsoever. I wouldn't go as far as to say that I'm depressed. Honest to God, I don't know what to do. Apparently, we've been lied to. Finishing high school, and attending college has not led to a successful career for many of us. Don't see yourself as a failure. We're a PAWN in somebody else's game. God Bless, and good luck to all of you. – posted June 5, 2016

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I am 62, a former corporate legal secretary (25 years experience) and have been unemployed since 2011, with the exception of temp jobs and some part time employment (none in my previous field). I’ve net-worked, gone on on-line job sites, employment agencies and various sites such as Craigslist on a daily basis and cannot find anyone to hire me. The very few interviews I have had, I conducted myself in a professional manner, dressed accordingly and showed my interest in the position I was applying for. I am an active, physically fit and pleasant individual and I’d like to believe, intelligent. I’ve jumped through all the hoops and have more than willing to work for salaries that would barely keep a mouse alive. Still no job… I feel like I’ve landed on a strange planet. I have never in my entire adult life EVER been unable to get a job until now. I can’t even get a job as a receptionist or general administrative work. I’ve even been open to retail positions (no experience – really?). And now days you have to have some kind of degree or certificate for everything, no matter how menial the job. I just can’t wrap my mind around this. I’ve gone through all my savings and 401k, my unemployment has long since been exhausted and had no choice but to take my social security earlier than I had wanted to. Social security will not cover all my living expenses (mortgage, monthly assessments, utilities, bills and groceries). I have no family to help me and friends who are in similar situations. What is someone suppose to do? After working your whole life doing the right things … and now close to being homeless and/or hungry. And worse than anything discovering that no one cares about this situation. I’ve emailed the White House several times about this and their response (a month or two later) was a form letter with my name plugged in expressing their concern about the employment situation in the country today. Other public officials I contacted either just put me on their official sites to email me updates on all the wonderful things they’re doing for their citizens, or they don’t respond at all. I guess it’s true that our country just wants us all to just crawl in a hole somewhere and die. I am deeply saddened that this is what has become of our country. – posted March 23, 2015

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I grow weary of the “reinvent yourself” comments. Don’t you think those of us over 50 and out of work haven’t thought of that? I’m 53 and I’ve been out of work for 3 years; I have an M.S. and I’ve done just about every type of work you can imagine since I was 15 – but that doesn’t matter in modern America. I also spent 6 honorable years in the Marine Corps. So much for that…I doubt I will ever have gainful employment again, and that’s just a realism I’ve come to accept; I will continue to look for work, but all of these “Do this and that” comments are meaningless to someone who’s spent more time worrying about their future than you can imagine. At this point, I could care less what happens to America or its people…sorry, but even if I do work again I’ll never invest a dime into this country, and will spend only as much as necessary to survive. Why should I invest in a country that’s failed me over and over. Oh yeah, and the student loans I had are now defaulted, so there goes my credit. – posted June 2, 2015

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4 ½ years unemployed, no health insurance, lost everything, looking for employment every day and 2 ½ years with no income at all. Then people can’t figure out why I’m angry. The only thing they can say is be patient and positive. Seriously no really seriously get a clue you self absorbed morons. Give me a living wage job and my life back and I won’t be angry anymore. In America getting a job use to be a simple thing to do. Now when you say you want and need a job you’re looked at as asking for to much. – posted May 9 2015 

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ATH recently did a fine summary of HR behaving badly with "HR Managers: Do your job, or get out." As always, the comments are loaded with horror stories and a few demanding that someone from HR make an appearance and explain themselves to help us understand what makes human beings behave in such a deviant fashion. I thought I'd offer my own personal run-in with an HR twat to give some insight on just what kind of human being inhabits the role of HR today (with Corporate America's blessing, of course).

I had a Tumblr blog for a while where I shared my many MANY bad experiences these past few years in this sick fucktarded job market. This was at my absolute lowest point, i.e., before I discovered the English teaching route, and I openly posted that I had planned to end my life in a few months. One day another unemployment-related blog shared my story on their own blog, leading to lots of supportive messages from kind sympathizers. Unfortunately, the extra attention led to this darling little troll making an appearance in my inbox:

Yeah, right, because people act the same exact way they do in a job interview as they do when they're blowing off steam on an anonymous blog (insert massive eyeroll here). Say, how does one get the "atttiude" across when clicking the various "yes/no" fields in those ATSs?

My public reply was simple -- public because she then used Tumblr's blocking feature to block me from being able to reply to her personally or even view her page: 

I was just waiting for a message like this. I’m not even going to say anything to you. I’m just going to publish your lovely note so everyone can read it and walk away. I have NOTHING to say to you or your ilk. 

A few others had some very nice public replies to her, which slightly restored my faith in humanity: 

If having a bad attitude really meant you wouldn’t have a job then your basic ass wouldn’t have one either. How fucking gross is it to sit there and mock the people who are so desperately in need of work? What kind of disgusting attitude do you have to have to sit behind your desk sipping on coconut water and laughing at people who are critical, impoverished and angry about their lack of employment? They have the experience, they even have the willpower. You have a job and the gall to tell someone else they don’t have a job because of behavior? Well let’s take a look at your behavior. You have come across a blog of someone who is so inconsolable about their lack of employment that they are legitimately and openly planning on killing themselves over it - while still looking for a job mind you, they DO NOT want to die, they want job security - and you have decided to come into their inbox, tell them that they are unemployed because they have a shitty attitude and that if YOU had them as a candidate that you would have a “field day” “laughing” about it. You are scum and your carelessly worded message may cause someone their life - that they are fighting for as it is - and you don’t deserve the job YOU have. Miss “I work in HR but I’m a massive festering sphincter and have no idea how to actually give people resources towards getting a job.” 

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Like, that’s another thing. If jadelyn really cared about what she was saying, she’d maybe offer tips on how to deal with HR! Or something! It probably wouldn’t help, this person has probably seen and heard it all before, but jesus christ, going into a suicidal person’s askbox and telling them that it’s all their fault? Is THIS how we treat the long-term unemployed?? No wonder there’s so much discrimination against people who have been unemployed for a long period of time; because asswipes like jadelyn are manning HR departments all across America. 

I followed up with a final public response:

She didn’t offer one single justification or explanation in defense of any of the miserable companies I’ve encountered. It’s just ALL MY FAULT. I completely screwed up the “attitude” section of every online application! Wharton researcher Peter Cappelli tells about an employer that got 25,000 applicants for a routine engineering position — and the HR applicant tracking system rejected every single one of them. Yep, that’s 25,000 bad attitudes, it can’t possibly be an inept HR department!!!” Honestly, folks, I didn’t create my page for the sake of attention to what my future plans were. I thought it would be somewhat therapeutic to openly share my stories which could help the younger generation avoid my mistakes. Nothing more, nothing less. I’ve removed the note on the left column of my page and disabled the “ask” to avoid hearing from any more trolls. As for this particular troll, I will take solace in the fact that this kid who appears to be half my age in her pic (she says she’s 28 on her Etsy profile) is going to find herself in my situation in another 20 years. And it will happen so fast she won’t know what hit her.”

Initially, I tried to just move on from this little “incident.” But, my curiosity got to me. I wanted to learn more about this oh-so-awesome HR “professional” who trolled my blog. The Tumblr blocking feature is fairly weak; all one needs to do to circumvent it is visit from a different IP address -- which I did. The description of her page underneath her picture -- and I am not kidding, here -- said "I am not a nice person."

Wow, way to make a case that you don't deserve all the hate being thrown at HR. I’d have to question just how the hell she keeps a job not being a nice person. Hmmmm…unless she’s just using her blog to blow off steam...isn't it ironic, dontcha think...

And this blurb is just adorable:

Right. Working in HR, NOT being a nice person, laughing at another's misfortune…great way to make the world a better place.

And, good grief, she openly crams enough personal information in that sidebar to make it very easy to locate her full name and address. Combined with all the narcissistic selfies and adult-oriented posts, I have to wonder, is it smart to put so much personal stuff on public display which can so easily be found by an employer? Answer: No, it's not smart. 

I realized I was not dealing with the brightest bulb here, and I kind of felt sorry for her (my pity only lasted until I remembered that she's the one employed while so many talented Americans are not). If I had criminal intentions (or was just nasty, like her) I could have done some serious damage with that information. She's VERY lucky that, unlike her, I *am* generally a nice person (the exception being that I'm not so nice to people who proudly declare they are “not a nice person" or who troll me on the internet).

There's a reason HR is now considered the sleaziest profession in our workforce, sleazier than used car salesmen. At least we have ordinances that dictate a car dealership cannot advertise a car that is NOT readily available to purchase on their lot; they get in big legal trouble if they violate this rule. There are no similar laws to protect us from the Jadelyns of America. Had she been as awesome of an HR professional as she claimed to be, she'd have apologized for the behavior of her cohorts who have smeared her line of work and try to do some damage control, i.e., "I assure you, we're not all bad, honest!" All she did was further prove that, yes, HR is full of sociopaths.

A fine observation from ATH (he left out "trolls the unemployed on the internet")...

And, another one (same blog, different post)...

Look at these eyes, folks, these are the eyes Quint describes in "Jaws"...black and lifeless. This is your modern HR professional. God help us all.