The challenge of a job that doesn't meet your needs
The challenge of a job that doesn't meet your needs
The challenge of a job that doesn't meet your needs
By Anisa Purbasari Horton
September 14, 2020
Summary
Covid-19 has left many people underemployed - in temporary jobs or on reduced hours.
While much of the focus has been on rising unemployment figures, there's also the issue of underemployment: people who are working in jobs that don't, for various reasons, meet their requirements.
Delaney recently co-authored a paper on underemployment and distress, based on samples of underemployed workers in the UK. In this case, the researchers examined underemployment as defined by the International Labour Organisation: "Those who work fewer hours than a national specific threshold related to working time while they are willing and available to work additional hours." The research, conducted before Covid-19, found that underemployment may have "Detrimental psychological consequences" for people, for several reasons.
For workers who are working fewer hours than they would like, underemployment may also result in less contact with the workplace.
That's because underemployment - whether as defined by the ILO or more broadly - often affects people's sense of identity, says Gladys Ato, a California-based clinical psychologist and author who works with executives.
In her recent work, she's met business owners applying for other jobs to pay the bills and professionals facing the difficult reality of reduced hours.
In the US, the number of involuntary part-time workers - those who had their hours reduced or were unable to find full-time work - is 4.1 million higher in July this year than it was in February.
According to Delaney, workers in sectors like hospitality and tourism are likely to be heavily impacted in the next few years as reduced demand for these services will lead to reduced hours and fewer jobs.
Work environment sociologist Tracy Brower, based in the US state of Michigan, says: "So many businesses are doing a reset." The skills that might have served you well in your previous jobs may not be the ones that you need to get yourself out of underemployment.
Freeman says returning to his old job made him realise that "a job is a job, and you're fortunate to do what you want for a living".
Reference
Purbasari Horton, A. (2020, September 14). The challenge of a job that doesn't meet your needs. Retrieved September 24, 2020, from https://www.bbc.com/worklife/article/20200828-the-challenge-of-a-job-that-doesnt-meet-your-needs