Job instability the new normal and Americans are getting used to it

At one time, and really not that long ago, job stability was something that we could look forward to as we headed to the job market. I remember when getting a job at the GM factory in Oshawa (Canada) was the ticket to having all the good things in life and not having to worry if tomorrow would see you having to find another job.

Today that sense of job security no longer exists and the reality is that job instability has become the new normal in our lives. For much of the last ten years or so there has been a growing shift away from being assured that there would always be a job waiting around the corner and more a sense of being lucky to be able to find a job of any kind.

This left many people wondering what their futures were going to be like and constantly worrying about even being able to have any sense of security – job or otherwise.

However according to a new survey from Adecco where they polled 1.014 American for its annual Workplace Insights report there has been a shift in attitudes from workers when it comes to career instability, and especially when it comes to temporary and contract jobs.

• Temporary jobs are more favorably viewed today than in the past. Nearly two-thirds (63 percent) of Americans say they view temporary jobs more positively than they did last year. That might be a result of a huge majority (86 percent) of Americans believing a temporary job is a good career option for people looking to gain valuable work experience.
• Americans are also more likely to work in different fields than they were in 2011. Sixty-eight percent of Americans would be more willing to take a job in a field outside of their degree or study today than they would have been last year.
• Women may be more flexible when it comes to finding a job than men. Seventy-two percent of women would be more willing today to take a job outside of their field of study compared to 64 percent of men.

Of course this doesn’t mean that people are giving up on the idea of having a long term job but rather it is evidence that workers aren’t letting this job instability totally consume them and in most cases are appearing to be coming to terms with it, and the changing workplace.

via GigaOM