Unemployed - from Europe to the Arab world, a personal story

Hi everyone, and welcome to this episode of Compensation Insider. Today, I want to talk about a story which I already published a few years ago. It has generated a lot of engagement with the readers of the blog : I wrote about me facing unemployment in my life.

At the time I was reacting to one of my colleagues who had written a blog post about unemployment in the Arab world and how being unemployed was sometimes socially loaded and badly perceived. He was asking for feedback on experiences. So here's my story.

Young graduate and unemployed

The first time I was unemployed was at the end of my studies, before I found my first job. I had just graduated from one of the very good Business schools in France, with a specialisation in HR, and I was eager to "get in" and prove myself. Yet, at the time in 1993 there was a mini-recession and instead of being offered 4 jobs before even graduating like the students in previous years, on average students from my school had to wait 4 to 6 months before getting their first job offer.

I was no exception.

At the time, looking for a job was very different. No internet, no social media, no LinkedIn, Monster or Bayt. You had to read newspapers, and send a handwritten "lettre de motivation" (cover letter) along with a print out of your resume by regular mail, often to a specific person (with their name). You also, in most cases, received a reply back, even when it was negative.

Job hunting was a time-consuming and expensive exercise, and a slow one too.

Some things were the same. With the economic weakening, companies were very cautious to offer jobs to young, inexperienced graduates. They wanted people with experience, not a young woman with only 4 internships even if they were productive and in prestigious organisations. And the experienced candidates who happened to be unemployed were not so much better off because, like today, companies preferred to recruit "passive candidates", the ones who were still working.

From that point of view, my experience was probably very similar to that of many young Arabs in today's world. Educated, sometimes with a bit of relevant experience acquired through internships. Often still living with their parents, which reduces the burden in part.... but increases it in other ways.

Parents worry about their kid's future. After a while, they wonder whether it's your fault : are you too picky, do you make enough efforts to look for the job or are you being a bit careless (if not downright lazy), why don't you take just anything that comes your way even if it's not in your chosen field (as if "anything" really does show up by the way...), what will our friends think if our child is not successful etc...

I believe in the Arab world, the last point is compounded by cultural expectations and the pressure to "look good" in front of society, no matter what. Plus, in many cases, young Arab men can't really get married until they have a stable job and income. So being unemployed has an even bigger societal and personal impact on the youth in the region.

I was lucky - or stubborn ;-) and resisted my family's pressure to look for a job in merchandising or finance, or just about anything, "just to get a job". I eventually landed my first role at Airbus. The job was in HR, my chosen field of specialisation, and it launched my career.

Losing my job - twice

In this 28-year career so far, most of the times, the decision to part ways with a company was mine, including when I left my employer in order to set up my independent training and consulting company in International Compensation & Benefits in Dubai.

Yet, twice, I was laid off and ended up being unemployed. The first time was at the end of 2001. I was working for a company that supported the airline industry. Not a good place to be right after 9/11 when no-one wanted to be on a plane and the whole industry crashed at lightning speed !

The second time was in 2009 when the consequences of the global crisis were hitting even otherwise very healthy organisations - so, along many others in those days, I lost my job.

In 2001, to be honest I did not panick much.?I was barely 30 years-old, with no dependent family, and with good skills. The crisis was only in my industry, not a general one. So I basically took a little bit of time off, and within a few weeks I was back on track with what turned out to be an even better opportunity to lead C&B EMEA for Apple. In the end, this layoff was a blessing in disguise, and the 2-month unemployment stint was more of a vacation than anything else. However, I did feel there was a lot of social stigma in being unemployed, and a form of pity too.

How the 2009 world of unemployment was different from previous crises

In 2009 it was a different story. I was working in the UAE at the time, and had to leave the country at the end of my grace period - I didn't want to do "visa runs" as I always felt this is a grey area for EU citizens to remain in the country. The crisis was global this time, so the phone was not ringing with job opportunities like it used to.

No-one who was employed dared to leave their job, and I had a distinct feeling that because I was unemployed, some of my friends would be more hesitant in seeing me.... Maybe they were scared that being unemployed is contagious like the flu and they can "catch it" by spending some time with me ? There was also a lot more of pitying this time, as everyone was aware of how difficult it was to get back into a job - and most people could do nothing to help as there were no openings.

Luckily, I already had in mind the idea of creating my consulting company, so I was able to focus on learning new skills such as preparing a business plan, reading about marketing for consultants, and setting up my structure in France. Still, some people, including in my closest family, felt I was saying "I want to create my company" as a way to deny my status of not being employed.

Even though I knew I had survived being laid off a first time already, so I could "do it" again, it was more difficult this second?time. I felt more pressure to take a job, any job, just for the sake of it. I quickly realised that being based in the french countryside was also not very helpful when you are targeting clients in the Middle East. So when I had the chance to return to the region with a prestigious organisation, I grabbed it and took it as a side-step to establishing my structure in the UAE... which I eventually did, only a bit later than initially planned :-)

So the social toll was heavier the second time.

The GCC-specific pressures of being unemployed

In the GCC specifically, as an expat, there is the added pressure of not being able to stay in the country even if you feel this is now your home, and where you want to continue to live. Some of my friends who lost their jobs had to leave the country at short notice, ruining the school year of their kids and making the children have to re-do the same class the following year, which in itself bears some social stigma, at least in certain social circles in Europe.

Plus one of the major differences between the GCC and the Western world, and especially Europe, is that there is no such thing as an unemployment scheme or even some kind of emotional system or support. So no financial support when you end up without a job.

And, a lot of times, people feel extra pressure because they're supporting a whole family ecosystem back in their home country. Those who are not coming from Europe in particular, tend to send a lot of money back home, so their financial status affects more than their direct family nucleus.

However I can say that with the COVID crisis starting in 2020, I saw that the government in the UAE has learned a lot : they gave people the chance to stay until the end of 2020 without having to pay fines, even if their visa had expired. That was a really, really smart move on the part of the government to say, "We have some people who have skills, who have experience. They're here. We might have as well let them stay here for a little while”. Let those people stay without having to pay a fine, and maybe they can find another job and the country won't lose that talent.

A positive evolution in perception ?

Out of all this chaos and social burden, I believe one small positive thing has emerged though.

The word "unemployed" is not as shameful as it used to be.

With widespread unemployment, society at large is putting less of a moral judgment on the personal qualities or supposed "defects" of the person who is unemployed. When nearly 30% of young Saudis are unemployed, it can't be because they are all "bad", "lazy" or "clueless". Society now accepts that being unemployed does not necessarily mean that you were incompetent at your job or did something legally or morally wrong and were terminated.

And we've seen more of that shift during the COVID crisis.

Compared to the 2008/9 crisis, we see a lot more solidarity between people, a lot more support, a lot more acceptance on the part of hiring managers about why people might have stopped to work and so on.

We still have some kind of social pressure to make money, and we tend to define our identities through a job, but I find that the moral stigma of being unemployed is not as important as in the past. The negative perceptions (of personal values and behaviors) associated with being unemployed are starting to recede and become less important and less visible in society.

I hope that sharing my story will help. A lot of people think that I have a good career :?I've been Global Head of Performance and Reward at two large multinationals. I've been an independent consultant since 2013, still around, getting clients. That's what people see.

They don't necessarily see that I might not have had such a good experience at times. And yes, you can have a career and have some times where things are not as easy, and it's still a good career overall.

So I hope that if at the moment you're struggling to find a job, this will give you hope. I'm always open to discuss with anybody, so don't hesitate to reach out. I'm here and I will try to help. Most likely, I can't find you a job, but I try to help in any way that I can. Thank you so much and see you next week. Bye.

PS : There are some really great comments from some readers at the time I first published this story in 2013. I strongly encourage you to check them out here : https://compensationinsider.com/unemployed-from-europe-to-the-arab-world-a-personal-story/