The Long, Anxiety-Ridden Journey of Being Jobless

Sept. 6, 2010 — -- Beverly Wiatrak is one face of an unsettling trend: She's 32 with two kids and a college degree and has been unemployed for a little more than a year.

Like Wiatrak, who worked previously as a project manager for 13 years, nearly half of those looking for work have been out of a job for at least six months. This Labor Day, President Obama kicks off a week of events to prove that he is determined to rebuild the economy and create jobs, which Wiatrak hopes happens sooner rather than later.

"The economy is moving in a positive direction, jobs are being created; they're just not being created as fast as they need to, given the big hole that we experienced," Obama said Friday. "We're moving in the right direction. We just have to speed it up."

In previous downturns, job hunters bounced back far more quickly. In 1976, it took less than 10 weeks on average; in 1983, 12 weeks; and in 1994, 10 weeks. This recession, on average, it's taking nearly 26 weeks to find a job.

"[It's] been a long stretch, yes," Wiatrak said. "[I] really didn't expect it to be such a long-term thing. I assumed it would take a month or two. Maybe three [to find a new job.] I certainly didn't expect it to take a year."