Dionne Foster, 52, built a steady career as a business analyst contractor before losing her job in April 2024. A year later, she found herself taking on an eight-week summer internship at an IT company, where she made $20 an hour and worked alongside a high schooler.
“I haven’t made $20 an hour since I was in college,” Foster said.
Foster accepted the internship offer after roughly a year on the job market, where she cast a wide net of applications for both full-time and contract opportunities. She said she’s never struggled to find work prior.
“I’ve never been rejected like this before,” Foster said, adding that, in the past, when one contract ended, another one began shortly after.
For seasoned Gen X professionals like Foster, the job market is especially brutal. Many recount frustrating experiences with résumés screened by algorithms, routine ghosting, and the blow of being labeled “overqualified.”
In such a tough market, some Gen Xers are taking whatever unconventional roles they can find to stay afloat while they search for jobs in careers they spent decades building.
Monetizing hobbies
William Simon, 49, had always heard that his job in medical equipment sales would be safe. But after losing his position at a startup in April, he hasn’t been immune to the struggles other job seekers are facing.
“The hardest part of looking for a job in this economy is the competition,” Simon said, adding that he thinks “a lot of employers are looking to go the younger route” so that they can pay less and have a greater ability to mold their employees.
In addition to relying on his savings and unemployment insurance, Simon said he sold his boat and cut back on recreational activities to meet expenses.
He’s also turned his hobbies into jobs, officiating ice hockey games and picking up shifts at a friend’s indoor golf lounge whenever he can.
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“What was a fun hobby that I fortunately got paid for, has now turned into a lifeline and helping me stay afloat,” Simon said.
Cathy Valentine, 60, has faced similar challenges. After losing her six-figure job in November 2023 as a coach who helped guide companies through change, she’s been searching for work. She had a two-month stint as a government contractor, but continues to look for a higher-paying job. In the meantime, she’s taken a job as a prep cook and pastry chef at the Garden Cafe at McKee Botanical Gardens in Vero Beach, Florida.
“I get to be creative in that job,” Valentine said. “That’s one of the reasons I love it.”
Valentine said she enjoys her coworkers and the garden walks before each shift, but the $15 hourly rate isn’t enough to get by. She said she is behind on rent, has sold off valuables, and misses seeing her grandchildren, whom she can’t afford to visit. While she’s had a few callbacks recently, the long hours at the café have clashed with interviews.
“I worked until 2 or 3 in the morning, got home at 4, and then had an interview at 9 that went terribly,” she said.
Cathy Valentine
Waiting for the right opportunity
Julie Jordan-Wade also just marked two years of unemployment after working in meeting and event planning for over a decade. During that time, she’s turned down two offers, unwilling to settle for roles she doesn’t see as long-term careers.
While she continues her job search, Jordan-Wade, who is Gen X, has pieced together part-time work in communications at a church and, recently, as an outreach educator at the Dallas Holocaust & Human Rights Museum.
The museum job, she said, allowed her to make a little more money with a low time commitment. Plus, she said she values working with nonprofits.
“I don’t think we have to get all of our fulfillment out of what we do, but I think there needs to be something about it that we look forward to doing,” Jordan-Wade said.
