Young French people who are disturbed by repeated internships, odd jobs, and unexplained jobs are no longer naive to believe that today's world will lay the red carpet for their careers. Nevertheless, they still enter the job market with a little vision, ready to give everything to get or keep their first job.
If an open-term contract is temporarily unavailable, at least a fixed-term contract must be available first! However, the ambitions of young French people for employment have been repeatedly obliterated by the new crown epidemic. Long before the new crown epidemic, the unemployment crisis has affected nearly 20% of young people under the age of 24 in France.
"Our diploma seems worthless"
Elise, 24 years old, is about to receive a master's degree in European studies from the New Sorbonne University in Paris.
Like every year in the past, I planned to work in a bank in the summer, but learned that they had cancelled all their upcoming employment contracts due to the epidemic. This makes me vaguely feel that I will face the situation of unemployment after graduation. The approaching graduation date made me panic. Currently, I am looking for a position related to my major, and I am also sending my resume to jobs in the food industry, such as grape picking. The companies I have contacted said that they will not hire again in 2020, maybe there will be a slight possibility at the end of the year. But my rent can't wait for that time.
The diploma I obtained in five years seemed worthless, which is really frustrating. The most urgent thing is to find a job in the food industry, but this is really not the starting point of my career after obtaining a master's degree as I imagined.
"As time goes by, my requirements gradually decrease"
Paul, 24, a junior consultant, decided to start his own business due to lack of better options.
In February, I applied for a consultant position in a communications agency, and passed the interview and the written test. However, in March, the week before the lockdown, the recruiters informed me embarrassingly that unfortunately, they cancelled the recruitment plan. So I had to look for a job again. As a consultant, there are usually a lot of recruitment information on the Internet, but during the lockdown period, there are fewer and fewer job opportunities.
Later, I interviewed an advertising company, but because my personal experience did not fully match the job requirements, they did not hire me. Although I have two master degrees, six months of internship experience in journalism and a work-study experience in media, I have gradually reduced my job requirements over time. Recently, I began to try to start my own business to fill in the gaps in my resume, not to mention that it is not easy to enter a large company at the moment. Economic activity has slowed down, but job competition has intensified. Too many people face unemployment as soon as they get a diploma!
"The morale is high, but the economy is struggling"
Ossiana, 22 years old, a graduate of printed matter manufacturing, is looking for a job in Lille.
Osiana looking for a job in Lille
Louis who is about to graduate with a master's degree
The company closed down because of the epidemic. During this time, I lived on the savings I saved for the holiday. Three days before the lockdown, my unemployment benefits stopped. Even with a professional diploma in printed matter manufacturing, in the past year, I could only do odd jobs. Having obtained the qualification for housekeeping service, I felt exhausted physically and mentally after four or five months of housekeeping service. Then I went to KFC to do odd jobs with a cleaning company. In November last year, a sporting goods store finally prepared to give me an open-ended contract, but I was in a car accident on the way from get off work and had to resign afterwards.
I am particularly worried that someone will tell me one day: "Although we admire your performance in the interview, we cannot hire you because of the epidemic."
With the help of relevant local departments, I went to apply for a job in a supermarket that was about to open. At the end of February, they informed me that the selection was in the final stage, and there was no news after that. The temporary employment agency introduced me to a Decathlon position two days before the closure of the city, and now there is no news. I am in a good state, knowing how to regulate and motivate myself... But financially, I am under too much pressure.
Sylvain with a letter of employment commitment
Bartender Vladimir in the job hunt
"We have a master's degree, but we have to make sacrifices."
Louis, 26 years old, lives in Nice and is about to receive a master's degree in risk law and sustainable development.
I haven't really started looking for a job. When I searched for information on the Internet, I couldn't find any job that suits me. Although the profession I studied seems to have a wide range of employment, it is actually not the case. Students generally have good academic qualifications and lack of internship experience. With the development of the epidemic, employment prospects have become even less optimistic.
In our class, except for those who are studying for a doctorate degree, most of the students are confused about their employment prospects, and some even hold the mentality of "as long as it is a decent job". The employment situation this year is very complicated. The media refers to us as the "new crown generation" or the "cursed generation". We studied hard and got a master's degree, but in the end we had to make sacrifices.
"During this time, you must show your willingness to work more strongly"
Sylvan, 24, a sales consultant, holds a letter of employment commitment.
The epidemic prevented me from getting job opportunities. Before closing the city, I passed the interviews of two stores, and they were all planning to hire me. After the city was closed, I never received any more news. Having been looking for a job for a year and a half, I have spent the most depressed period of my life. I am particularly worried that someone will tell me one day: "Although we appreciate your performance in the interview, we cannot hire you because of the epidemic." In the end, I decided to take the initiative to ask about the recruitment situation, and I contacted on Facebook The managers of the two stores expressed their strong willingness to work. I only received a reply from one of the companies, and the manager gave me a letter of employment commitment, and my hanging heart was finally relieved. Today, I look forward to officially joining the company.
"I admit I am completely lost"
Vladimir, 23, lost his job as a bartender in Bordeaux.
A few months ago, I had an indefinite contract at a cocktail bar in Bordeaux. But the lockdown disrupted everything. Today, although my life is gradually recovering, I have lost my job and have no subsidies. I admit that I am completely lost. I have been working in this industry since I got a diploma in hotel management and passed the bartender training in 2016. But unwilling to be content with the status quo, I would rather give up the no-fixed-term contract and go to a Bordeaux hotel introduced by an acquaintance to have a try. So I participated in the interview. In early April, the hotel reached a verbal employment agreement with me. Although facing the lockdown, they still promised to apply for "partial unemployment compensation" for me. Once the lockdown is lifted, I can start working. Therefore, I resigned. This is not an impulse, because in our industry, the turnover of personnel is very frequent. However, the National Employment Agency did not accept part of my unemployment application in accordance with relevant policies, and the employer did not fully understand the policy. I don't blame them, just feel that I chose the wrong direction at the wrong time, and I comfort myself with the inexhaustible road. The hotel intends to hire me when it reopens, but I can't wait. I have to pay the rent, pay back my credit card, pay all kinds of bills... I never leave my resume for a day, and there are many people like me around. I want to find a job as soon as possible, after all my savings have been used up.
