In the ‘Great Stay’ economy, Americans feel stuck
Hiring is anemic in most industries and, with mortgage rates high, people aren’t moving.
When I ask Nancy Malkin about the current state of the job market, her response makes me pause: “2009 was nothing compared to this. It’s been brutal.” Malkin is a longtime recruiter in California’s tech industry. She co-founded Curphey & Malkin Associates and usually has a flood of clients. But the past two years have been sparse for hiring — for some, even worse than the Great Recession.
This is a weird time for the U.S. economy. On the surface, it’s humming. Unemployment is a low 4.1 percent, growth is strong, consumers are spending, start-ups are booming, and inflation has cooled. But many Americans are finding it difficult to change jobs. Hiring is anemic, and companies are giving fewer bonuses and promotions. Moving is nearly impossible because so few homes are for sale, and no one wants to trade their 3 percent mortgage rate for 7 percent. Americans are even keeping their cars for record amounts of time. All of this is part of a phenomenon that has been dubbed the “Great Stay,” where people feel cemented in place.
To be sure, this is a pretty good situation for many people, especially if they enjoy their current lifestyle. But for anyone feeling restless, it’s tough. Young workers have started saying they have “resenteeism” at work: They don’t like their jobs but are reluctant to quit. This is a big shift from 2021 and 2022, when jobs were plentiful and it was easy to quit and find a dream job that offered more money and flexibility.
Then there are the nearly 7 million people who are unemployed and finding it difficult to get interviews, let alone a job. Young people hunting for their first roles and older Americans who have been laid off have flooded social media sites such as TikTok with their frustrations.