[GPSCC-chat] Telling It Like it Is in Silicon Valley

[Tian Harter]

I guess I’m one of those long term unemployed people. I left AOL at 40 a
decade ago, I’ve still not found work in the field. Part of that is I
wanted to be an activist, but part is that none of the things I used to
do are still being done. I probably could learn some new job, but there
just doesn’t seem to be enough need for that…

alexcathy at aol.com wrote:
> Dear Friends,
> 
> Sometimes you find something posted on the Internet that tells your own
> story better than you could tell it yourself. A big thanks to my friend,
> Carole Hanisch for sending me the link to the article by Dave Johnson of
> Redwood City, California below. I was a professional computer programmer
> for twenty-two years in Virginia, New York, and Massachusetts before
> settling in California's so-called Silicon Valley just in time for the
> big crash of 2000. 

(snip)
> 
> * Posted on Campaign for America's Future, July 7, 2010
> Too Old For A Job, Too Young For Medicare Or Social Security
> <http://www.ourfuture.org/blog-entry/2010072707/too-old-job-too-young-medicare-or-social-security>
> by Dave Johnson *

(snip)
> 
>     I know so many people here who are over 40, were laid off in the
>     2000-era dot com crash, still haven't found a regular job and aren't
>     going to. They have had occasional "contract" positions—which means
>     no benefits, no security, a 15% "self-employment" tax and no
>     unemployment check when the job ends. And now, 10 years later
>     they're a lot over 40 and are not going to find a job because so
>     many employers here won't hire people over 40.
> 
>     And now there are so many more who lost their jobs in the mass
>     layoffs of 2008-2009 and can't find a job. So many of them are also
>     over 40. In fact, many were laid off in obvious purges of over-40
>     workers, offered a small severance that they could only receive if
>     they promised to take no age-discrimination action against the
>     employer. (I don't say "company" because some of these worked at
>     nonprofits.)
> 
>     Most of these people will not find another job, but are too young
>     for Medicare and Social Security.
> 

-- 
Tian
http://tian.greens.org
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