‘Resume anxiety’ keeping 20% of C-19 job losers from going back to work

One in five workers who are still unemployed due to COVID-19-related layoffs are not looking for a job because they don’t want to update their resumes. Gen Xers, ages 45 to 54, are most reluctant to revise their resumes, with 26 percent citing that reason, according to a survey conducted by ResumeBuilder.com.

Researchers evaluated responses from 1,250 unemployed Americans who lost their jobs during the pandemic.

Twenty-two percent of Americans, ages 18 to 24, represent the second-largest group to express anxiety about resume writing. However, only 15 percent of baby boomers say they dread updating their resumes.

“The data from this study shows there are a multitude of reasons why people aren’t re-entering the workforce,” said Stacie Haller, career counselor at ResumeBuilder.com. “Concerns about COVID-19, childcare or even how to update a resume can trigger job-search anxiety and make it challenging for people to continue looking for work.”

The most cited reason for not job hunting is the fear of contracting COVD-19. Thirty-one percent of respondents say they are concerned about getting the virus, 23 percent cite a lack of access to childcare and 22 percent say they make more money on unemployment than they would be working.