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CNN Live Sunday

What Can You Do to Protect Yourself in Today's Economy?

Aired November 11, 2001 - 17:17   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CATHERINE CALLAWAY, CNN ANCHOR: Well, the U.S. economy has been taken some hard hits since the terrorist attacks. In fact, a new survey shows that many people are changing accordingly. And they're still optimistic. 80 percent of those polled say that they've made adjustments in their working style since September 11. And as corporate America continues to issue those pink slips, 40 percent of those surveyed say that they remain hopeful they'll find a comparable job within a month if they are laid off.

So just how have people changed and what can you do to protect yourself in this uncertain economy? Joining us from Washington to talk about all this is Diane Strahan. She's from careerbuilder.com. Thanks for joining us today.

DIANE STRAHAN, CAREERBUILDER.COM: Thank you.

CALLAWAY: I don't know about safety in numbers, but there appears to be at least some sense of security in numbers of people that are being laid off or about to be laid off say that they're still pretty optimistic they're going to find a job soon. That's interesting.

STRAHAN: It is interesting. I mean, you take a look. There's a double negative happening with the American work force today with the tragic events of September 11, combined with the significant increase that we've seen in the unemployment rate. And it's really showing that workers are very resilient and are still optimistic, but there were a number of behaviors that the Curb Holder survey picked up that are new since the September 11 event.

CALLAWAY: Well, you know, we mentioned that 80 percent of those say that they have made adjustments. I'm assuming that's what you are talking about. Tell about some of the adjustments people have made.

STRAHAN: Well, as I said, it's really forced workers to reevaluate how they're approaching work. And one of the highest ranking changes has been that employees have really felt the need to stay connected to news and information sources. Over 60 percent of all workers surveyed said that they really felt the need to stay connected. And whether that's, you know, bringing their newspaper with them to work because they didn't finish cover to cover while they were eating breakfast or logging on to cnn.com or listening to the news on Internet, more workers are staying connected.

And the second change...

CALLAWAY: Go ahead.

STRAHAN: ...that we saw was that people are much more observant and aware now of their work surroundings. Before, they really didn't care, but now they really are taking stock in where the exits are, what's the disaster plan, how am I going to get out of here and also how am I going to get to the work. In the greater Washington area where I live, Baltimore and D.C. have been put on high alert status. San Francisco and other cities for tunnels and bridges. So people are very concerned, not only about their work environment, but how they're going to get to and from work.

CALLAWAY: Yes, people seem more alert and aware of their surroundings and what's going on. But also in the survey, most people are not as happy with their work as they used to be.

STRAHAN: Yes. I mean, workers are satisfied. We've seen some degradation in the amount of satisfaction that they're having, but they remain very, very confident and very resilient. As the Curb Holder poll indicated, 4 in 10 workers think that they can land a job within 30 days if they are laid off. And that's really a phenomenal rate of degree of confidence, given everything that's happening in the work environment and everything around this from a current affairs standpoint.

CALLAWAY: All right, let's talk a little bit more about confidence, because we are running out of time. So how can we make people even feel more confident about what will happen or what they can do to protect themselves, protect their jobs, protect their future?

STRAHAN: Well, absolutely. We focus on three things from a careerbuilder perspective. One is if you are in an industry that's been affected or you think that you could be affected, you definitely want to ready your resume and take a look at your skills. We might find that workers are going to need to be more flexible, flexible in the geography. Maybe they'd like a 10 minute commute, and now they're going to have to really take on a 30 minute commute or even a 45 minute commute, as they widen their search parameters as they're looking for jobs.

And then, they need to be flexible about the industry. You might be working in the airline industry. Maybe that's been hit hard or hospitality. And you need to take stock in your skills and see how transferable they are to other industry sectors and not be so concerned about your title or necessarily staying in the same type of job function and open up your horizons to be very flexible.

But stay aware of what's going on. Stay networked in your community of influencers and who you're working with in your industry and outside. And keep your skill sets and your resumes up to date.

CALLAWAY: Yes, and like you said, keep your options open, right?

STRAHAN: Absolutely. CALLAWAY: Diane Strahan, thank you for joining us today.

STRAHAN: Thank you.

CALLAWAY: She's with careerbuilder.com. Amazing how good it feels to get that resume ready.

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