Facebook
Fark
Digg
Reddit
Stumble
Las Vegas resident Donna McQuinn searches through a list of job openings at Nevada Job Connect on South Maryland Parkway on Friday, Sept. 16, 2011.
Saturday, Sept. 17, 2011 | 2 a.m.
Sun Archives
Las Vegas resident Donna McQuinn searches through a list of job openings at Nevada Job Connect on South Maryland Parkway on Friday, Sept. 16, 2011.
She was a productive member of the community, held casino industry jobs for most of her professional life. Now, Donna McQuinn senses that people look past her, an invisible character in a country where self-worth is often measured by the jobs we fill.
She is a high school graduate but has no college degree. She hasn’t had a job for two years.
She’s eight days late in paying the $158 weekly rent at a rundown residential hotel near Maryland Parkway, and could find herself homeless any day. After 99 weeks of unemployment benefits that expired months ago, she’s down to her last $70, surviving on $200 a month in food stamps. Night after night, she eats just noodles.
“I’ve lost my sense of self-esteem,” McQuinn said. “I call it being a person, and I’ve lost that. I used to have hope. I still want to hold onto it, but it’s very hard to feel hopeful. I cry every night. I couldn’t make it on the streets if I had to. It’s scary out there.”
The former casino cage worker at Strip and Lake Tahoe casinos was one of an estimated 400 people checking job postings Friday at Nevada JobConnect on Maryland Parkway, one of several operated by the Nevada Employment, Training and Rehabilitation Department.
She had not heard the newest numbers, released Friday, which placed the state’s unemployment rate for August at 13.4 percent, up from 12.9 percent in July. Both were better than the statewide figure of 14.9 percent recorded in August 2010.
The depressed construction industry continued to be a chief contributor to the state’s worst employment environment since the 1930s, a dynamic that was intensified by California’s worsening jobs market, which saw its unemployment rate climb to 12.1 percent last month. The Nevada neighbor is the chief driver of this state’s tourism economy.
No matter, McQuinn and the other job seekers do not require an economics degree to grasp the depth of the ongoing collapse. The state agency had more than 200 positions posted on its jobs board Friday morning, ranging from minimum-wage sales positions to $36,000-a-year marketing jobs.
Like many of those scouring the job listings, McQuinn has applied for hundreds of jobs during the past two years, rarely getting a call for an interview. “Age is playing a big role,” noted Debbie Kirkland, a 56-year-old former elementary schoolteacher who sat two chairs over from McQuinn, who nodded in agreement.
“I wish I had more training. I might be old but I can still learn,” the ex-casino worker said. “Back in the day I could fill out an application and always get the job I wanted.”
She’s not comfortable working on a computer, never had to when she was changing cash for casino chips at the Mirage and Caesars Palace and Caesars Tahoe, and can’t afford a laptop or broadband service to search for jobs from home. The JobConnect office has computers and Internet service, so McQuinn muddles through as she fills out online applications, but she finds the process dehumanizing. Corporate human resources departments never call back or send letters explaining whether or why they chose others for the jobs.
“The HR world is very cold,” said Ben Daseler, office supervisor at the Nevada JobConnect location on Maryland Parkway.
A year ago McQuinn was jumped by a group of teens as she walked along a downtown Las Vegas sidewalk. She was bloodied and bruised, further shaking her shattered confidence. “When I had a job, I was a somebody. Now I’m more of a nobody,” she said, “and people sense that. They look right through you.”
She has contemplated suicide but has found the strength to push ahead. “I want to work. I want to work. I want to work,” she said, her intensity level increasing as she repeated each sentence.
“Unemployment just leads to more homelessness, more depression and the suicide rates will keep going up. You lose something when you don’t feel worthy. I’ve gone two years without a job, and there’s no one in your life to say you’re doing good. We all need a place to go, a place that makes you feel productive and good about yourself. We all do.”
Quoted from the story; "She's not comfortable working on a computer"
That, in itself, will make you unemployable.
I wish the best to this lady, and I hope she gets comfortable around a computer soon. It's how people work today.
That's truly sad. $158 a week isn't cheap. They should pool their resources and live together. Are there no jobs at all??? Isn't McDonalds or another food service company hiring?
With the construction crash and the tourist industry reeling from the bad economy, it's going to take a long long time for Vegas to recover. And with the casinos gouging the tourists that do show up by having the machines so tight, (soon even that will dry up) it's going to take even longer.
@Darthfrodo,
I was thinking the same thing about sharing resources. I read this fascinating webpage, "confessions of a bottom-feeder", it was written by a lady who had fallen on hard times. While I don't agree with many of the things she says she did, I found it comforting in some ways.
As for jobs- McD's and Taco Bell are not hiring. It took a year for my son to find a job.
Not long ago Station Casinos was hiring hundreds (maybe a thousand) of people. Experience, no experience. I'm wondering if she tried to get a job there. Sounds like she would have been a good fit.
Next,
Please explain the existence of all the computer trained people who are long term unemployed.
Tax cuts will not create jobs. DEMAND FOR A PRODUCT WILL. Minimum wage jobs will not expand the economy either as much as jobs that pay enough so a family of four can be housed; feed itself and have transportion. By the way Angle, WE ARE NOT LAZY!
Berns -- good job on putting some faces on the reality ordinary people have to face daily.
"And with the casinos gouging the tourists..."
Darthfrodo -- compared to the predators with badges actively on the hunt for all minor violations, the casinos are lightweights.
Government ignores the daily struggles of people like those in this article who are just doing the best they can to get by. Having the basics, like somewhere to live and enough to eat, are hard enough. To get a $1,200 ticket from Metro because you have a crack in your windshield is devastating, and the local courts demand to be paid NOW. Then there's that B$ DMV registration scheme designed to trap all Nevada motorists. All of it designed to keep thousands of parasites feeding on the public teat that has run dry.
Government needs to get real, downsize and leave the rest of us alone!!
"If the exercise of constitutional rights will thwart the effectiveness of a system of law enforcement, then there is something very wrong with that system." -- Escobedo v. State of Illinois, 378 U.S. 478, 490 (1964)
<<Isn't McDonalds or another food service company hiring?>>
McDonalds? Where have you been? McDonalds hire people, mostly kids, pay them minimum wage and they work maybe 15hrs a week. Haven't you been paying attention? Even jobs at McDonalds are at a premium and they certainly aren't going to hire a 50-something year old.
<<Next,
Please explain the existence of all the computer trained people who are long term unemployed>>
Mark:
It's the "age thing". When I was unemployed, I went to computer classes to keep up my skills and learn new ones at least once every 6 weeks. I had been using Microsoft Office for years. It didn't matter. I finally figured it out and as much as I HATED to admit it - I was just too old!! Empployers want those who obtained "certificates" in everything, including all the Microsoft Office products....and younger than 40. I KNEW I could run circles around some of these gals (a lot of things come with 30 years experience in the legal field, including how to deal with clients, judges, court personnel, etc), but if you ain't got that certificate - forget it!! There were times I knew more than the person interviewing me!!
The lady in this article may have to take a step in another direction if she wishes to get a job. Get out of the casino industry. Even those minimum wage hotel jobs like in housekeeping have to have a lot of competition in Vegas (I know it's like that where I live at the casino hotels and just plain old hotels!).
I feel bad for this woman, but I was in her shoes not quite a year ago when that "too old" door hit me in the a**!! I quit looking for a law firm job and started doing customer service work - working at a grocery store, a tax preparer service; I also filled out applications for all the department stores (6 of them) and got call backs on 2 of them which got me through the holiday season last Christmas. I then gradually went into the home care field and I'm very happy now. That's one field - home care - that does not discriminate because of age because even if you're 60 - you're a "young person" compared to those you take care of!!!
Don't worry the Republican's will help you out when they can finally sale out the country to the rich. Why is the Walton Family Billionaires while their employees are paid below the poverty line without health benefits? It's time to wake up people the only way things get better is through education which is getting destroyed in this state at an insane rate. Time to get the 2nd Bill of Rights forced up the corporations well guess where.
This is what happens when spoiled brats get everything from daddy. These people are running the country and have no idea how an economy works. All those Ivy League universities and business schools are graduating total morons.
Its been 2years3months since NCS Construction closed its business and laid me off. And have had two construction related job interviews since then. The bottom line is I do not know enough people in this area to get hired for anything it seems. Thankfully my wife covers me on bills since my savings has run out a month ago, or I would be sounding like this lady too. I have stepped up my game on the computer end. Even formed my own company and built my own website. Its not much but i'm trying (www.davymllc.com). As much as I like living in Vegas I may have no choice but to move to a stronger economic area. It will be a sad day when it comes down to this. This lady needs to put her $70 into a bus ticket. There is no work in this town, unless you know someone. Truth.
My heart goes out this poor woman because of what her life has set her up for and now is ripping her apart with - coping skills in a changing world.
Davey (www.davymllc.com) and Det_Munch will make it because of the innate adaptability, the flexibility to pick up new skills and become more approachable by the current job streams. You don't have to walk on water, just on the mud!
Gratitude runs through me when I get my little gigs. Tear-jerking gratitude for how lucky I am to get something that pays me to do my little thing and share what I can discover. I am different from 95% of the current workforce, and I know why - I love my job and I do it like my life depends on it...because it does.
It's not just the dough; it's the satisfaction of being the one to get to show up and perform. The most powerful drug available from the pharmacopia of the human body is the glee that struts through the blood stream when you've satisfied even your own high standards with a fantastic performance of something that matters if only one split second of time - it was your light or your angle, your understanding or training or perspective that made the day for somebody in a way that one and only one could offer. That is why I love my job, and can't lay it all down to settle for social security and have all this juice wondering 'Where's the glee, Joe?'!
Very sad...there are many like Ms. McQuinn...they are that uncomfortable age between the old economy and the new economy...hopefully, she will find somewhere to work so that she can survive...sad...
p.s. well stated Mr. Lamy...
One diversity that gives me back what I put into it is writing about my discoveries, and getting positive feedback from seeing my little words splayed out and dancing the tunes of the houses that taught me that day.
Here are some:
http://www.examiner.com/green-building-i...
http://www.examiner.com/green-building-i...
http://www.examiner.com/green-building-i...
http://www.examiner.com/green-building-i...
http://www.examiner.com/green-building-i...
http://www.examiner.com/green-building-i...
I really wish I could take all the "Nevadans" who voted to raise the minimum wage yet again in 2008 and give a good hard slap to the face to each and every one. I hope that made you all fell good about yourselves because people like this poor woman are the ones paying for it. Lower the min wage to $7.50 and the unemployment rate will go down.
Las Vegas Metro Police Department is the biggest joke ever! They are a disgrace!
@Mark,
I wasn't casting aspersions on the unemployed. This market sucks, and I understand fully that well-qualified people are without jobs right now. My point is, being computer-illiterate is just about a death knell to a person's employment chances these days.
the poor and unemployed get poorer and the rich get to keep their tax breaks. good work tea party.
The unemployed have a lot going against them. HR departments and hiring managers have no compassion for the unemployed. The ravages of the recession are just not taken in consideration. They shun the unemployed like lepers; think something is wrong with them and often select 'better' candidates who are currently employed elsewhere. There is no incentive to hire the unemployed. It is a vicious cycle, the unemployed are really screwed in this economy.
"Lower the min wage to $7.50 and the unemployment rate will go down."...
OH BOY!
That would be GREAT!
$7.50 hr x 40 hr wk = $300 x 4 wks = $1200 mo. - taxes.
That leaves you right around the POVERTY LEVEL, and that's if you are single.
WHOA!
That will solve ALL OF OUR PROBLEMS!
If she wanted a job 99 plus weeks ago, she'd have a job. Being unemployed is a choice that people make, if one can find work in their comfort zone then they best pack up and move themselves somewhere else where they can find work. She can even clean homes and do other odd jobs that do pay, there are 24-hours a day, work 20 of those hours, and she'd eventually make enough to survive. There is much she can do if she elected to do it. Now that the 99 weeks of unemployment is over, the whining starts, poor me, poor me, poor me.
It doesnt matter if you are comfy on a computer or not. There just aren't enough jobs for everyone. I wish I had an opening for this lady.But like everyone else there just isn't enough demand to hire people. Its not taxes its not regulations, its real people dont have enough money to spend and therefore I cannot hire new people. I never had to lay off anyone. I got lucky and had enough people leave on their own free will and I just never replaced them. I'm down 5 workers from where i was in 2008.
There are 5 people looking for that one job nationwide. Since Nevada's unemployment rate is much higher than most other places, that statistic probably goes to 6 to 1.
Over 80% of those looking for work will not be able to get hired.
Why not have institute small tax rate so as to help people make it through this deep, deep recession?
It is sad to see story like this.
In my opinion, people in Nevada do not have much choice on their careers. You either work in a hotel or you wait for a long time to find something you like. When hotels are getting used to under staff, it is just extremely hard to find a job. Finally, employers trend to hire experienced people first.
Now, if you are unemployed and have a "limited" area of experience, you have almost no chance to get hire by a hotel. And sadly this state's job market is dominated by hospitality industry.
Being Unemployed Is A Choice People Make??? Its2hot is on Crack? What a completely ignorant thing to say. WTG
Sounds like it is time to make a major life style change and get a bus ticket to North Dakota or South Dakota. Either way, if she continues going to the "job board" in Vegas, after 99 weeks with little or no results things will not improve for Ms. McQuinn.
Anyone who is unemployed in Nevada should accept reality and get the hell out of here. There are no new jobs here, and there will be none any time soon.
Why stay here when other States have much lower unemployment rates?
This all begs the question though, why DOES Nevada have the highest unemployment rate in the Nation?
The answer includes:
(1) Nevada has awful political leadership;
(2) Nevada welcomes every worker, legal and illegal;
Taken together, these factors have left far too many workers competing for far too few jobs.
Arizona chased out the illegals, and their unemployment rate is only 9%, and that takes into account that 'massive' boycott of Arizona.
Democrats in Nevada have made Nevada nothing short of a disaster.
How can she leave? She has no money. Now, it's her fault she's unemployed? What an ignorant statement. Computer skills are not essential to every job, so because she doesn't have them she's unemployed? What planet do you live on? We as a country have lost our moral compass so instead of compassion for those less fortunate we are looking for ways to make it THEIR fault. We should be ashamed.
I'm not sure what she means when she says she's not comfortable working on a computer. During the 1990's I was a temporary office worker. Being an office temp was an easy way to get work. You go to some office temporary place like Apple One or Volt, take a 10-key test and a typing test, and then wait for a call to go to some company to do some data entry or some other office chore. I know that there is a lot less temporary office work now but anybody thinking about office work absolutely needs to learn to type and add figures on a 10-key adding machine. Better yet, learn the basics of Excel and Word and take a basic bookkeeping--accounting course at a junior college (just in case you have to post debits and credits on a general ledger). In other words, put in the effort to learn basic office skills--they could help you get a job in an office somewhere.
sevenfoot:
And people wonder why America has become the land of human cesspool freeloaders. Comments like your's is the reason, appeasment and feel soory for peoples choices they made for their life.
News flash for you, unemployed is a choice that people make, if anyone really wanted a job, they'd have a job. People choose to be employees or to be self employed; people choose their own density in life. Instead people choose to use the poor little me syndrome and what others aren't doing for them, nothing but lame excuses for their pathetic choices they made for their life where they expect people who opted a different road to take for their life to take care of them. Frankly, they may their bed, it's time they sleep in their bed.
Timmy,
Now, how many people are out of work and how many jobs are there when matching skills to workers? You must know at least some hard facts because otherwise the only "human cesspool" would be what you write and say and think.
Employed or not, same issues really. Carrot and stick economy. Very few are making it now. Most of us are simply dreading water even Tim Wiggins. If a few go under and drown, oh well they should have paddled faster.
What needs to be understood is most posters on this forum are in a better financial picture than a BofA, or MGM/Mirage. Our books balance far better than theirs.
America is broke.
This job hunt jazz is simply pr bs for people from a different era when the economy did work. Short of being a whore, nobody is being hired or keep in this economy. There are no jobs and none are coming.
These people in these stories would be better off in the streets protesting. The fact they are not speaks to what those unemployment offices are really about.
Mark Schaffer:
I know many people that became unemployed and they didn't stay unemployed for more than a couple of months, that's after they returned from vacation or taking some time off to relax and enjoy their family. A few opted to change professions and found that they like being self employed doing handyman work or maid work, they're still making a living and adjusted their lifestyle accordingly to the income made and they're happy.
As far as matching skills to workers, it is still a choice that people make. People choose to live in a comfort zone and stick to the same old routine, mindless trolls not taking the incentive to think outside the box. People also choose to stay in a community because they like it there or they've never ventured outside their comfort zone, it's a choice.
If people thought outside the box and really tried, they'd be working doing something. Instead they have the attitude that somebody owes me or they use the poor little me syndrome where they actually believe that others are to blame for what is occurring in their life and others are too blame for them not having a job.
If people aren't working then they need to stop making excuses, stop blaming others and get off their lazy poor little me syndrome and do something about it. They made their bed, now they can sleep in their bed. Nobody controls anyone; this is America, the land of the free where people decide their own destiny and future.
My Timmy,
You have all the easy answers. Now, out of the thousands looking how many, exactly, are the "many" you know? That could be verified to show you are are not being less than honest that is. The rest of your post is notable for it's shallow and fallacious reasoning...not that this is anything new.