For policy wonks and economists, the first Friday of every month is a jobs day – a day when the US department of labour releases its latest employment numbers and unemployment rate.



For 24-year-old Miriam Braverman, pounding the pavements to answer Craigslist ads, every day is a jobs day – until she finds a job.

It’s a task that many young college graduates are used to: the job search. In July, the unemployment rate for younger workers, those 20 to 24 years old, including many recent college graduates, was 11.3% – five percentage points higher than the overall unemployment rate in America.

Finding a job, for young workers, however, is not what it used to be. The defining factor of the millennial generation – technology – is thwarting many young people in their search for jobs, as they contend with the randomness of Craigslist, the cruelty of email black holes, and the increasing importance of personal connections.



And then there’s the pay: low. And the job security: nonexistent. Firms prefer freelance workers because they are protected from having to pay for unemployment, taxes or benefits. Companies no longer hire temps to work just days or weeks, but instead opt to keep them for months at a time.

“These jobs are what I call ‘permorary’,” says Phil Press, executive vice-president at Temporary Alternatives. “People think that temping is a quick fix, but it’s not. Not any more.”

Three-month-long job search? Dislike. Photograph: dpa picture alliance/Alamy Photograph: dpa picture alliance / Alamy/Alamy

The job search: hot and very bothered



Technology, once thought to be the saviour of job searches, is now thwarting them. Mike Fisher, a 25-year-old college graduate who lives at home, has dedicated the past few months to his job search. He used to work as a department manager at Walmart, but didn’t drop off his resume because the companies resolutely shuffle job-searchers back to their websites. It has limited his options.

To find potential jobs, Fisher uses sites like CareerBuilder and Monster, checking them every few days and applying for the job postings that have accumulated since his last visit. All of the emails and applications sent out over the last couple of months have led to just one follow-up – a call from an insurance company for a commission- based salesman. Fisher passed: “I am bad at sales.”

“I am trying to avoid entry-level retail jobs,” he admits. “In another month, I’ll start looking for just any job.”



And there’s a reason companies prefer online applications: because they are an easy way to sift out strangers; the more successful applications generally come through referrals from company employees.



“It’s more about who you know,” says David Janett.



He’s experienced that himself. Janett, who spent the past few years in Chicago working as a personal trainer, is moving back to New York. He asked for potential job leads on Facebook and through a friend of a friend, Janett landed a phone interview at a healthcare app startup.

Open calls – job listings designed to draw crowds – are still popular, but they often have a technological element: they start out on Craigslist, which can attract some interesting characters. Employers are wary. So are jobhunters.



For many millennials, a retail job will do. ‘I just want a job,’ says Fisher, a former Walmart employee. Photograph: Marc F Henning/Alamy Photograph: Marc F. Henning / Alamy/Alamy

“I am a big proponent of Craigslist, for housing, furniture, jobs. It takes you on a journey” of quirky characters, laughs Janett, who studied theatre at New York University and is about to enrol at Columbia for a degree in exercise physiology and nutrition.

Jesse Spruill manages Hoomoos Asli, a restaurant in New York. Looking for candidates to fill two positions, Spruill posted a listing on Craigslist, which he says is best for advertising jobs but often results in unpredictable effects. Within 24 hours, he received over a hundred resumes by email. “Oh my god, it was overwhelming,” he says, laughing. “We are still getting some now, a month later.”



Many of the candidates had college degrees, something that makes little difference in the restaurant industry. “Just because someone has a college degree doesn’t mean they can’t wait tables,” says Spruill. The job pays about $10 an hour.

Janett, the Columbia student, has interviews lined up but is looking for a job that will pay him $15 an hour. “I have had survival jobs before – in retail and restaurants. The pay is not livable. Working for $10 an hour is not realistic for anyone,” says Janett.

I know very few people who have just one job, especially in New York. Living here is so expensive. It eats up your checking account really quickly.”

Even survival jobs, however, are drawing crowds. Given Craigslist’s vastness, open calls fill up fast.



“I’ve been to a lot of open calls all month. It’s kind of funny because a couple of years ago, you’d literally walk in and get a job the same day,” said Miriam Braverman. “Nowadays, you apply and you have to wait a month and then they call you to the open call.”

She has also found the job-search process is not as face-to-face as it used to be.



“I’ve had more success through Craigslist than just walking in and saying ‘Hey, are you hiring? Here is my resume’,” says Braverman.

The open call for American Apparel in downtown Manhattan was mostly attended by high-school students looking for a summer job. Photograph: Sarah Lee Photograph: Sarah Lee/The Guardian

Braverman is not usually a waitress: she was a tour guide in Belgium and graduated two years ago from FIT with an associate degree in textile development and marketing. She hopes to go back next fall to get a bachelor’s in international trade.

While New Yorkers and tourists alike soaked in the sun on a hot day at Madison Square Park, Braverman was on her way to an open call for servers at a soon-to-be open Belgian beer garden. She believed she had an edge.



“I lived in Belgium for about nine months, so I hope I get it,” she told a reporter.