- Gen Z and millennial TikTokers are complaining about how difficult it is to get a corporate job in 2023.
- One TikToker said she has over 10 years of working experience and has been rejected by over 500 jobs.
Gen Z and millennial TikTokers are expressing their frustrations about the US job market, saying it feels "impossible" to find a well-paying corporate job in 2023.
Alison Johnson, a fitness influencer on the platform, said she has "a bone to pick with America," in a TikTok video that has now received almost 600,000 views.
She said: "So, I'm headed to my serving job … I fucking hate it. I have my literal business marketing degree that put me in a cute $80,000 in debt and I make more serving sushi rolls.
"I'm an almost 25-year-old chick going against corporate ass America … people with so much experience. All I got is my degree. People say get your degree, but then they don't talk about how you need experience. The degree was the experience," she added.
It's not just Gen Z who have just graduated that are struggling, workers with years of experience are also sharing similar issues.
'I can get a job for $18 an hour, but $18 an hour in this economy doesn't cut it'
TikToker Anna Mae Wood posted a video in October titled: "Job hunting in 2023…" that has almost a million views.
"I wanna know how people in my generation are supposed to get on in this economy," she said. "I have over 10 years of experience in sales, retail, management, upper management, hiring, training … I mean the list goes on."
She explained that she had been recently laid off from a well-paid role and had applied to over 500 jobs since. She only got one interview and didn't get the job, and received rejection letters for the rest.
She added: "I know my worth in the workplace and I can't get a job. Now, I can get a job for $18 an hour, but $18 an hour in this economy doesn't cut it. I need to be making at least $70,000 a year and that's not even to be living lavish. That's to be fucking surviving."
Another TikToker, who goes by the name Natasha, posted a video that went viral in August saying she had been unemployed since November 2022 despite having five years of experience in human resources.
She said: "No matter how many jobs I apply to, getting a job feels impossible. The reality is we are in a recession right now and while it may not feel that way for some people, it definitely feels like that with all the inflation. My hot take is to literally just wait till things blow over."
She added that unless you have connections at a company or are very qualified "there's a 9 out of 10 chance that you are not getting the job."
There's no shortage of reasons why the job hunt has become harder in the US. Alongside a turbulent economy, the rise of "ghost job" postings, candidates being screened out by AI applicant tracking systems, and companies replacing workers with AI tools have made it harder for workers to secure new roles.
US job openings fell to their lowest level in the past two years this October.
Nick Bunker, economic research director for North America at Indeed Hiring Lab, told Business Insider recently that Indeed has seen the biggest decline in job postings for office jobs.
Still, some young people on social media are disenchanted with corporate life altogether and are seeking alternatives. They've described the 9-to-5 as "soul-crushing" and "depressing" and are turning to entrepreneurship, four-day workweeks, and even "lazy girl" jobs instead.