The job market looks solid on paper. In 2023, unemployment hit a 54-year-low at 3.4% in January, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that U.S. employers added 2.7 million people to the payroll the same year. But it’s a different story for active job seekers. A staffing firm Insight Global found that recently unemployed full-time workers applied to an average of 30 jobs, only to receive an average of four callbacks or responses. So why does it feel so hard to get a job right now and is the U.S. labor market as strong as it seems?

Chapters:
01:23 Daunting process
05:07 Cooling market
07:56 Repercussions

Produced and edited by: Juhohn Lee
Assistant Editor: Jack Hillyer
Animations by: Christina Locopo
Supervising Producer: Lindsey Jacobson
Additional Footage: Getty Images, Jenna Jackson

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Why Getting A Job Feels Impossible Right Now