What now? Adapting to a new labor reality

After the first wave of contagions, we face the challenge of adapting to the new work reality.

Normal" life is beginning to resume for a large part of the population after the COVID-19 confinement, we start to have more freedom of movement, we can see family and friends, we can do "non-essential" shopping, we can go for a drink, to the beach....

This is allowing us to recover some of our habits of the past (always without forgetting that we must continue to maintain all the relevant safety measures), but many people do not have a routine to return to for different reasons. Among all the possible changes in routine, we are going to focus on the work part.

It may be that their situation has changed indefinitely for those who must continue to telework, who are in an ERTE, or who, unfortunately, have lost their job, are at risk of layoff or will not access summer jobs. There may also be students who have completed their studies and are now facing the uncertain and disrupted world of work due to COVID-19.

Of all the options proposed, the one that, a priori less discomfort and uncertainty can generate us is the option of teleworking, since we can have certain labor and economic stability. It is for it that we are going to do special emphasis in the rest of situations and the possible psychological consequences of these.

Adaptation to a new labor reality

People who are in an ERTE may wonder how this situation will end, when they will be able to return to work and even if they will be able to return to work or if they could lose their job. Often, this is associated with certain cognitive dualities, since on the one hand they have the "security" of being supported by the ERTE and by the fact that they have not lost their job, but at the same time, it is a situation in which they have not returned to their job.

Another situation that can be connected to the previous one occurs with those who have lost their job or who are not going to get the job they usually have; for example, in summer contracts.for example, in summer contracts. In this case, the person may go through two phases.

On the one hand, he/she has to accept the situation of unemployment, with the possible economic problem that may be associated with it.

In this phase, the person has to evaluate the economic consequences of this new situation, i.e., if he/she has savings, if he/she has other sources of income at home, the expenses he/she usually has, and with all this, explore his/her short-term options to be able to cope with the day to day.

Once this phase is under control, the person has to consider in the medium term what other employment options they may have.

Following the connection between the different situations, the phase of searching for employment options can be related to the phase in which a person is in the process of finding a job.he one in which a person is trying to access for the first time, or not, the labor market.. It is a stage that, already in itself, can be hard and complicated, so in this convulsive situation it can generate fear to certain people.

What to do?

It is true that the work situation may have become complicated in the short term, but we must be aware that this is a temporary situation that will gradually return to its course. It is important at this point to be aware of what our thoughts and fears are, since a fundamental aspect of controlling our response in this environment is to be aware of our own thoughts and fears.A fundamental aspect of controlling our response in this environment is to be as objective and rational as possible. It seems obvious, but unfortunately it is easy and frequent to get carried away by fear, which can lead to panic or blocking, and both options are very negative.

In these situations, all the mechanisms that the person has to face this situation have to be put into action. Sometimes, the problem may be that the person does not have job search resources, for example, in these cases it is important that the person is instructed on the main ways to look for a job, as well as on how to prepare a CV and other practical aspects of the job search..

Another situation that may arise is that the person needs to expand their knowledge and training in the sector they want to work in, so you can help the person to draw up a plan of action and see what areas they need to strengthen and how to get the knowledge and skills that will help them in their future career.

Finally, we often work with the person to help them control the emotions that cause them to go into crisis.. By this we refer to thoughts such as "I will never find a job", "If it was difficult before, now it is impossible", "Why should I even try?

These types of thoughts only generate discomfort and blockage in the person. Obviously, we do not want to go to the other extreme and that the person assumes that he/she will find a job the first time, but we do want him/her to put all his/her efforts to be able to do it..

Something that these situations have in common is that they can generate in the person a feeling of uncertainty and it is something in which we must intervene.

From Mariva Psychologists we want to help you to get the best out of yourselves and especially in these complicated moments. Our job is to provide the tools you need depending on your individual situation and that you manage to face and cope with all these situations in the most satisfactory way possible. You can contact us on this page.