Yahoo Finance Coronavirus: Majority of Brits stressed about finding a new job
Three quarters of Brits feel stressed about trying to find a new role in the current job climate, with a third putting their search on hold due to COVID-19.
According to a new survey of 1,100 UK workers by job board CV-Library, 75% of respondents said they feel anxious about about the likelihood of being able to find a new job, while 29% have put a pause on their search due to the pandemic.
At the beginning of the year, 93% of Brits were hoping to find a new job in 2020. It was also Brits’ biggest New Year’s resolution for 2020, with 64% deciding back in December that this would have been the perfect year for a new start.
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Nearly two thirds of respondents for the new survey said they won’t start looking again until lockdown is completely lifted, 22% said they’ll start searching again later in the year, and 4% admitted they’ve now given up.
The findings show that people who aren’t currently working are naturally the most stressed about finding a new role, with 85% of people who are unemployed and 79% of those on furlough admitting they feel this way.
The figure drops to 70% among people working part-time and 60% for those working full-time.
“With a new decade comes a desire for change and a lot of people had big intentions for 2020, whether that was to find a new job, set up a new business or embark on an exciting new career path,” said Lee Biggins, founder and CEO of CV-Library.
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“Sadly, the coronavirus pandemic has flipped the world on its head and forced people to abandon these plans, which is resulting in a lot of angst and uncertainty.
“It’s only natural to feel nervous or stressed about finding a new role right now — particularly if your efforts aren’t yielding any results. But, we can report that while job numbers definitely dropped during lockdown, they are starting to pick back up as restrictions slowly ease.”
Among the 72% of respondents who said they hadn’t paused their job search during the pandemic, only 16% said they’ve been able to find a new role.
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However, this figure rose to half (53%) of candidates in the public sector, 43% in property, 38% in recruitment, 32% in manufacturing and 24% in social care.
Biggins added: “Certain industries are undoubtedly going to be more affected than others throughout the pandemic and we’ve certainly seen more jobs being advertised within the public sector and social care.
