You Never Had It So Bad – Women Are Losing Jobs Faster Than Men

In Britain the government ministers fear that the economic downturn will be felt differently by men and women. The reason is that the rising jobless rate is often harder on women because their tendency to earn less and work part-time so they can care for family members. As women tend to work in smaller workplaces, redundancies go unnoticed by the media. Those women who are still employed may have to take on more work-an extra job or longer hours-to make up for a male breadwinner who has lost his job.

British ministers fear employers will cut female personnel much more readily than male workers as the downturn accelerates. Ministers have expressed concern that women will be targeted by employers seeking to avoid the costs of new policies, such as flexible working rights and longer maternity leave. Ministers also fear some of those being laid off are victims of discrimination and could be out of the workforce for a generation.

There is something you could at least consider while waiting the economy to turn around and finding your dream job again.

It might seem counterintuitive to start a new business when the economy is in downturn. But a recession can actually be the ideal time for launching a company. In fact, many well-known and successful organizations were born during an economic slump. Launching a start up in a recession will teach you how to be shrewd and prudent with your time, money, resources, and investment. Another positive effect of a bearish economy is cheap resources.

The following major corporations made it big during recessions.

In 1975, when Microsoft was created by Harvard University dropout Bill Gates, it was just a little company in Albuquerque, New Mexico. It dealt in rudimentary computing languages and began its climb to business stardom with the success of MS-DOS, which was sold and marketed to IBM Corp. and then IBM clones.

Burger King Corp., with its flame-broiled burgers, is another recession startup. The company began in 1954 when James McLamore and David Edgerton opened a Burger King restaurant in Miami, Florida. During another recession in 1957, the company introduced its successful signature burger – the Whopper.

Why did these companies succeed? Usually it is because the founders recognized a market need and filled it. Identifying that need is the key to any thriving business, regardless of the economic climate in which it begins.

©2009 Kristina Julin-Stringer