Finding Support in Tough Economic Times
The following is part of our series on different ways Facebook is used across the world. Read the previous blog post in this series here. If you have a story you’d like to share with us, please submit it here.
Marie* was expecting a typical day when she arrived at her advertising job one January day earlier this year. By the end, she was among the 15 percent of her company who had been laid off as part of a downsizing at the New York company. She was so devastated that she didn’t have time to say goodbye to co-workers with whom she had shared so many memories.
Like millions of people, Marie faced the harsh reality of the current economic recession that has led to double-digit unemployment in the United States and many other countries. She looked to support from her friends, family and former co-workers — and she found it by logging onto Facebook.
Facebook allowed her to reconnect with many of her former colleagues who had similarly lost their jobs, and they were able to support each other through a difficult time. Marie expected her first day without a job to be filled with sadness and isolation. Instead, she said she was greeted with well wishes and even job leads from previous co-workers and others who had been in similar situations.
“This gave me a great sense of support and connection,” Marie said, “As I gladly received wonderful messages and followed up on leads, I realized that this would not be possible without Facebook.”
One of those leads was for a marketing position, and Marie diligently followed up. Months later, on another day she thought would be typical, she received a job offer. Now she’s working full-time and grateful for the support and advice of her friends. As Marie said, “Facebook really helped me stay connected, receive kind words, and indirectly secure employment.”
Nikki, a specialist on Facebook’s user operations team, is grateful to have found her job through Facebook, too.
*Marie is a pseudonym we used at the request of the Facebook user to protect her identity.
Official facebook news!
Source: Facebook Blog