Honouring God in a really tough employment market

Youth unemployment is currently running at just under 16%, with the graduate job market being particularly hard hit.

Last year the Financial Times ran a story with the headline “It’s been a terrible year to graduate and find a job” where they highlighted that the graduate job application success rate is the lowest it has been for 30 years.

I have recently bumped into three of my former students who graduated last summer with good degrees from good universities who are back at home working in their previous Saturday or holiday jobs while trying and failing to get onto the career ladder.

Even for those who are successful, it is an uphill climb. One friend’s son, who graduated with a first in Chemistry from a highly prestigious university, submitted 160 applications before getting his first graduate job. Many of our young people are understandably anxious and pessimistic about their future.

Of course, not all young people go to university. One of my sons began an apprenticeship in September after finishing school. As someone with severe dyslexia who did not find school easy, he is absolutely thriving in the world of practical employment where he undertakes training one day a week at college and then gets on-the-job experience in landscape gardening for the rest of the week. Despite the rain and freezing cold weather we’ve had recently, he is really enjoying working. Yet despite the government fanfare around apprenticeships, there are few around and those that are, are highly competitive.

Both of these experiences have got me thinking about the Biblical view of work. When I began my own working life I was blessed to hear a series of talks on work at the London Institute for Contemporary Christianity by Mark Greene, as well as reading his highly influential book, Thank God it’s Monday. More recently, our church small group studied their short course “Fruitfulness on the Frontline” which develops some of these ideas and I would heartily recommend it to you and your own home groups.

We know from Genesis chapters 1 and 2 that work is a good thing; it is part of God’s original creation. When we struggle to find employment or hit retirement without having planned any purposeful activity to fill our days we can really struggle. Work is part of our created identity and will be part of the new creation (Rev.). Yet, post-Genesis 3 work is also hard and frustrating – it is not what it was at creation, or what it will be again when Jesus returns. Job-hunting and its pains are also part of this.

So how can we encourage our young people in this tough job market? Reminding them of these twin Biblical truths, that work is good and work is hard, will be part of the answer. Listening, sympathising and helping with job applications or offering work experience if we can, is another. Finally, having a gospel-centred mindset which sees the God-given value and dignity in all jobs, whether that is volunteering, waiting on tables or working in a prestigious graduate-scheme, will help our young people (and us!) to be fruitful and honour God in our work.