Career Services in the Post-COVID-19 Era: A Paradigm for Career Counseling Unemployed Individuals.

The 2019 novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has caused unprecedented economic disruption and unemployment worldwide, threatening to become both a financial and a humanitarian crisis. Prolonged labor market recession and an acute rise of unemployment are expected. The main question for career counselors will be how to provide effective career counseling to unemployed people in the post-COVID-19 world, where they may face many other unemployment-related problems. In this article, we suggest application of a holistic intervention model of career counseling for unemployed people that was designed to address the consequences of the acute financial recession in Greece.

The first months of 2020 were marked by the spread of a novel coronavirus (COVID‐19) thought to have first infected humans in late 2019. By October 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) counted 34.8 million cases and more than 1 million deaths worldwide from COVID‐19 (WHO, 2020). Most countries implemented physical distancing practices, lockdowns, and quarantines to reduce the spread of the virus. Additionally, many businesses, schools, shopping malls, and other organizations either closed their doors or ceased operations entirely, causing a sudden drop in economic activity and an acute decline in the world economic outlook. As a result, the pandemic is turning into a financial and, probably, humanitarian crisis. Predicting the long‐term economic consequences of COVID‐19 is difficult due to the lack of data regarding the virus's epidemiology, the uncertain effectiveness of restrictive measures, and the tenuous timeline for the development of effective medicines and vaccines.

Describing “the Great Lockdown” in April 2020, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) forecast COVID‐19 to result in “the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression” (Gopinath, 2020). IMF (2020b) at the same time downgraded its forecast for 2020 global growth by 6.3 percentage points from January 2020. The expectations for global growth of 3.3% for 2020 turned into a –3% fall in just 3 months, making the expected economic recession much worse than the 2008 financial crisis. Growth for countries in the advanced economy group was projected at –6.1%, while recovery was considered largely dependent on the fading of the virus. In the case of new outbreaks in the fall of 2020 and in 2021, the global output was expected to continue to fall (IMF, 2020a).

Moreover, recovery may be slowed by various reasons, such as lasting supply chain disruptions. In the postmodern globalized economy, the COVID‐19 pandemic disrupted the global supply and value chains that connect suppliers, businesses, and customers worldwide. Many international firms are facing difficulties in maintaining operations (Haren & Simchi‐Levi, 2020) and expecting possible supply shortages. As firms make investment decisions for the future, it is rather likely that the current economic interdependence will be viewed as a liability and that there will be a massive restructuring toward localization or regionalization of the supply chains. The Organisation for Economic Co‐operation and Development (OECD) argued that many economies could face a decline in output level of 20%–25% as a direct consequence of the lockdowns, with additional indirect impact difficult to estimate (OECD, 2020a, 2020b). As the pandemic spread, governments worldwide took unparalleled measures to support employees and businesses in the short‐term period of the lockdown (e.g., income replacement schemes, loan facilities) to lessen the impact of the crisis, and international organizations such as the IMF and central banks began providing financial assistance to sustain liquidity in countries' economies. It is certain that international cooperation and coordination in the coming years will be essential to reinvigorating economic growth.

The aforementioned financial crisis could cause a prolonged labor market recession and an acute rise of unemployment. Unemployment in Europe in April 2020 was forecasted to increase to 9.2% from 6.6% in 2019 (IMF, 2020b). The International Labour Organization (ILO) estimated that global unemployment in the worst scenario could rise by 36 million people, above the 188 million unemployed in 2019 (ILO, 2020a). Due to the uncertainty regarding duration of the lockdown, possible new outbreaks of the virus, and the impact on global gross domestic product growth, ILO's estimations spanned from 3.5 million to 36 million additional unemployed based on different scenarios (ILO, 2020a; McKibbin & Fernando, 2020). The aforementioned estimations seem rather downgraded, as certain sectors of the economy, such as tourism, travel, and retail are extremely vulnerable to such crisis and have already endured a major blow. In April 2020 alone, there were 25 million job losses in the travel and tourism sector (World Travel & Tourism Council [WTTC], 2020). Based on an initial assessment, the WTTC estimated that the sector faces the risk for more than 100 million job losses worldwide (75% in the Group of 20 countries) due to the pandemic (WTTC, 2020). In the United States, the claims for unemployment benefits reached the record number of 26.4 million since the pandemic outbreak (Sherman, 2020).

Moreover, a large‐scale rise of underemployment is expected, along with a significant decrease in wages and working hours (ILO, 2020b). The pandemic crisis has forced many businesses to provide services digitally and many employees to telework, highlighting the need for information technology skills; therefore, certain segments of the population will be hit harder by the crisis, which will exacerbate existing inequalities. People who are working in the most precarious jobs and industries or who lack knowledge of information technology will face the hardest hit. The same stands for members of social groups already at risk, such as women, youth, low‐wage workers, people who were already unemployed, and people with disabilities. Furthermore, many workers who had stable jobs and incomes before COVID‐19 may become precarious workers and face negative psychological consequences (ILO, 2020b).

As the world moves toward a new normality, the question for career counselors is “How can we provide effective career counseling services to unemployed people in such a volatile and uncertain environment, while our clients face a multitude of other unemployment‐related problems?” In this article, we will consider this question and present a model for career counseling that was developed to address similar problems occurring in Greece in the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis (Drosos, 2012, 2016). Greece was more severely affected by the 2008 crisis than were other Western countries, and its slow recovery did not start until 2017. To avoid bankruptcy, Greece asked for aid from the European Commission, the European Central Bank, and the IMF, signing three consecutive agreements for “bailout” loans in 2010, 2012, and 2015. The bailouts came with severe conditions that imposed harsh austerity measures and required tax increases and deep budget cuts with reductions of up to 40% in salaries and pensions. Unemployment in 2013 reached an unmatched rate of 27.3% (compared with 8% in the same period of 2008), with youth unemployment surpassing 55% and an estimated 44% of the population living below the poverty line (Eurostat Statistics Explained, n.d.). Beyond job losses, the quality of employment also deteriorated, and many individuals who remained employed were forced to accept reduced working hours and/or lower wages and benefits. The crisis affected all major sectors of Greek social and economic life, and Greeks were forced to change their lifestyles and adjust to a new reality within a very short period of time. The gravity and duration of the Greek crisis were unprecedented for any advanced economy of the post–World War II Western world and can be compared with the expected, estimated impact of the COVID‐19 pandemic crisis.

PSYCHOSOCIAL CONSEQUENCES OF UNEMPLOYMENT

Prolonged lockdown by itself has severe negative psychological effects, including posttraumatic stress symptoms, anxiety, depression symptoms, anger, and confusion (Brooks et al., 2020; Rajkumar, 2020). Frustration, infection fears, financial loss, and possible stigma are among the stressors that may trigger such symptoms. Socially vulnerable populations and people with mental health problems are the most at risk of experiencing these negative effects, which may last long after the end of the lockdown.

Although economic recession affects everyone, unemployed and underemployed people are arguably the most vulnerable to its consequences. Reduced income and unemployment are associated with increased mental health problems (Antoniou & Dalla, 2011, 2015; Economou et al., 2013; Murphy & Athanasou, 1999), addiction and substance abuse issues, and physical health problems. A recent meta‐analysis of 39 studies conducted in Greece during the financial crisis revealed deterioration of public health with an alarming increase of mental health issues, suicides, epidemics, and decline in self‐rated health (Simou & Koutsogeorgou, 2014). Moreover, job loss constitutes a disorganizing, unpleasant, and painful event that is more so for those individuals who have invested a large amount of their time and identity in their careers (Gabriel et al., 2010). Unwanted redundancy might be regarded as a “disaster” that brings the end of one's career and possibly as the result of injustice (Gabriel et al., 2010). Narratives of people who have experienced redundancy often include negative feelings such as shame, fear, anger, inadequacy, and frustration (Parris & Vickers, 2010). Employment fulfills the natural striving for social connection, and the social interactions that are developed within the workplace provide important psychological resources, whereas job loss may lead to an overwhelming sense of isolation (Blustein, 2006, 2019; Blustein et al., 2019; Paul & Moser, 2009). Additionally, long‐term unemployment and income reduction may result in other problems related to primary human needs (e.g., inability to meet financial obligations, lack of access to health care, inability to meet rent payments, food shortages), especially in countries with inadequate welfare systems. Other potential negative effects include deterioration of social and family relationships (Ajdukovic´ et al., 2018) and career‐related behavior. Figure 1 illustrates the welfare problems, psychological difficulties, and psychiatric disorders people can experience as a result of unemployment.

FIGURE 1

Unemployment Effects on People

Shupe and Buchholz (2013) recognized the multifaceted character of job loss and attempted to develop a framework regarding unemployment that would include psychological, social, and contextual factors. According to their framework, redundancy is considered as a potential major stressor for people, whereas stress is conceptualized as a negative emotional experience that includes fear, anger, anxiety, and uncertainty. They also highlighted the importance of cognitive appraisal of job loss. Personal factors (e.g., perceived importance of career) and contextual factors (e.g., financial need, social support) contribute in appraising the event as stressful. Subsequently, stress results in the following negative consequences: (a) career‐related repercussions, including decreased organizational commitment; (b) social consequences—namely, deterioration of significant social relationships and unemployment stigma; (c) mental health difficulties; and (d) physical health problems.

Unemployed people may be trapped in a vicious circle (Drosos, 2012, 2016) from which they cannot easily escape (see Figure 2). Job loss initially leads to strong negative emotions (e.g., sadness, injustice, bitterness, anger), and individuals need time to adjust to their new situation. Following this, newly unemployed people attempt to find a new job, but these efforts are often inconsistent and poorly performed due to a lack of job‐hunting skills. Given the economic recession and scarcity of job vacancies, such job search efforts are often unsuccessful, resulting in disappointment and depressive thoughts. In cases of individuals with limited formal qualifications, limited social networking, and a lack of self‐presentation skills, the job‐hunting task is even more difficult. Failure to find work is perceived as a confirmation of the person's inability to reintegrate into the labor market. Consequently, prolonged unemployment leads to more intense negative emotions, while abstention from employment and deterioration of positive career‐related attitudes and behaviors make finding work even more difficult. Thus, individuals often find it difficult to reintegrate into the labor market.

FIGURE 2

The Vicious Circle of Unemployment

Note. From Drosos (2012, 2016).

The role of dysfunctional beliefs is extremely important. Their impact on a person's behavior and career choices is particularly so, because cognitive mediation occurs in any change in career behavior—that is, one's beliefs function as mediating factors and change one's behavior. Beliefs such as “There are no job offers,” “I can't find a job unless I have somebody important to help me,” “It's pointless to send résumés as there are no jobs,” and “At my age, no one will hire me” may block the person from active involvement in job search and consequently minimize the chances of reintegrating into the labor market (i.e., such beliefs become a self‐fulfilling prophecy).

SOCIAL JUSTICE, CAREER GUIDANCE, AND ADVOCACY

The IMF has characterized the COVID‐19 crisis as “a global crisis like no other,” highlighting its economic and humanitarian negative impact worldwide, and asserting that for societies to recover, a “global response like no other” is needed (Georgieva, 2020). International multilateral cooperation will be essential to dwarf the negative consequences of multiple crises. The United Nations (2020) has named COVID‐19 a “human crisis” that is “attacking societies at their core” (p. 1) and stressed that the people who will suffer more from its ferocity are low‐wage workers, women, youth, people with disabilities, and all the vulnerable groups already at risk before the pandemic began. As social cohesion is disrupted, governments should focus their efforts on policies aiming to reduce inequality and promote social justice.

Recently, a Financial Times (2020) editorial argued that in the post‐COVID‐19 world, governments will have to become more involved in their economies, considering public services as essential investments rather than burdens and moving to economic models that boost the private sector without embracing austerity or neoliberal measures that maximize social inequalities. Previous experience clearly reveals that measures aiming to promote employment are by far the most effective for stimulating the economy (ILO, 2009) when compared with other measures such as reducing the value‐added tax. Furthermore, international and national policies should place social justice at their core and treat employment as “inseparable, interrelated and mutually supportive” to social protection, social dialogue, and rights at work (ILO, 2008, p. 2).

Given the unprecedented rise in unemployment, the focus on employment policies, and the critical disruption of people's careers, governments should establish effective career counseling and guidance services to meet the increasing need. However, the meaning of “effective” career counseling and guidance services should be defined. In past decades, several career theories have been proposed to address the uncertainty and the challenges of the volatile labor markets in the postmodern world. Many theories are focused on the development of career management skills and characteristics that help individuals cope with these challenges. Although the importance of socioeconomic conditions and of the broader social context has been recognized, the emphasis is on development of skills rather than improvement of employment conditions. Of course, the usefulness of career management skills for promoting one's career is undisputable, but such skills do not create new jobs (Sultana, 2014); therefore, the importance of the social context should not be overlooked. A few career theories, such as systems theory (McMahon, 2011) and the ecological approach (Conyne & Cook, 2004), are focused on the role of social context; nonetheless, these do not provide sufficient practices to address the current challenges.

Career counselors providing services to unemployed people who are threatened with social exclusion should aim to reduce inequalities in society (Hooley & Sultana, 2016). To achieve this goal, they should work in multiple levels. Hooley et al. (2020) argued that career counselors should help people acquire a better understanding of the politics of their situation, encourage them to challenge the mainstream ideas of normality, and promote solidarity and action. Nonetheless, it is clear that at the middle‐ and macrolevels, career counselors should become advocates for socially vulnerable groups by promoting the necessary policies. The International Association of Educational and Vocational Guidance has recognized advocacy as an essential part of career development practice (Arthur et al., 2013; Repetto, 2008) and highlights the necessity of a social justice perspective in the counseling profession. Career services should be put in the epicenter of the recovery strategies, and it is the duty of career counselors to advocate for this. Government officials are more amenable to advocacy when it is implemented by organizations and associations and has media coverage; therefore, the counseling profession should be ready to submit theory‐ and evidence‐based proposals for the career counseling services that would better address post‐COVID‐19 needs.

We propose that a career counseling model developed by the Panhellenic Association for Psychosocial Rehabilitation and Work Integration, known in Greece as PEPSAEE, offers governments a suitable approach to ensuring that individuals most adversely affected by COVID‐19 receive services that help them meet the employment challenges that likely lie ahead.

CAREER COUNSELING FOR UNEMPLOYED INDIVIDUALS: THE PEPSAEE MODEL

Theoretical Framework

To benefit from career counseling services, unemployed people need to believe that their unemployment status can indeed change and that their actions and mobilization can lead to the desired change. Counselors must help unemployed people realize that unemployment is a temporary rather than permanent condition and create the necessary counseling alliance. Counselors should have full faith in their clients' potential to achieve their career goals because low expectations may reduce the effectiveness of the counseling process. Counselors should emphasize the authentic hearing and understanding of the individual, and the counseling process should be coconstructed by both counselor and client. Clients are considered the “expert” in matters relating to their life, and counselors are the expert in matters relating to the structure of the counseling process.

Because work is an essential part of life, counselors must explore the individuals' experiences in the multiple environments in which they live and evolve (e.g., social, economic, cultural, labor). In this safe environment, clients have the opportunity to narrate and reflect on the course of their life so that their counselor is able to better understand their perspective on the world. As mentioned, dysfunctional beliefs are maximized during periods of economic recession, and these beliefs may influence the clients' perspective and narrative regarding their career. With the counselor's assistance, clients are able to examine the meaning attributed to their life course, to deconstruct the dysfunctional narrative, and to reconstruct their course toward achieving their career goals. The counselor facilitates the process and becomes a coconstructor of the new narrative that gives new meaning to the client's life course, applying an optimistic direction toward the future and the achievement of the individual's goals. This approach is rooted in constructionist and narrative theories such as the life‐design model (Savickas, 2015; Savickas et al., 2009).

Using this framework, career counseling focuses on the following areas:

motivating the client and developing client self‐esteem and self‐efficacy;

challenging dysfunctional thoughts and coconstructing new narratives toward achieving career goals using tools such as the Career Construction Interview (Savickas, 2015) and the My Career Story workbook (Savickas & Hartung, 2012) to facilitate this process;

developing the client's self‐knowledge (e.g., career management skills, career values, career interests) and acquisition of information regarding career and educational opportunities;

helping the client learn job‐search techniques, develop self‐presentation skills, and develop a social network and providing assistance (if needed) in practical matters such as sending job applications and creating résumés;

developing the client's action plan; and

supporting the client throughout the implementation of the action plan.

Career counselors must support the person even after job acquisition to cope with possible stress or other problems that may arise during the first months of being employed again. Being employed after a long period of unemployment is often a very stressful event, as people may have to prove—mostly to themselves—that they can address the challenges of work and retake their life in their own hands. These meetings become less frequent as the person feels more confident in the new job.

Multileveled, Multifaceted Career Counseling

The model proposed in this article is multileveled and multifaceted. When following it, counselors provide individualized career counseling, group career counseling, and career training services. These services are inseparable and mutually supported.

Individualized career counseling. In this level, counselors focus on the client's development of self‐knowledge, dispute of dysfunctional beliefs and construction of new narratives, development of an action plan, and support for implementing the action plan. Furthermore, clients are supported in defining both short‐ and long‐term career objectives, taking into account the necessary resources, steps, training, and time frames required. In many cases, short‐term goals can serve as stepping‐stones toward long‐term career goals, giving the client an opportunity to address urgent financial needs. Acquiring a job might be just one part of the plan for achieving the person's long‐term career goals. When a long‐term career goal requires new skills and education, clients are encouraged to attend the necessary training or educational programs to develop the required skills. Additionally, themes that have occurred in group career counseling or in career training are further explored.

Group career counseling. Group counseling is aimed at the development of self‐esteem and acquisition of social, decision‐making, and self‐presentation skills. Additionally, counselors may facilitate a better understanding of the situation and the economic recession and promote solidarity and action. Group career counseling is an intervention in which eight to 15 people facing common career issues meet for discussions facilitated by a trained career counselor. Career counselors may also design experiential exercises aimed at developing various workplace skills (Pyle & Hayden, 2015). Group formats provide a unique opportunity for people to practice their communication and social skills in a safe environment.

Career training. Career training takes the form of seminars providing reliable information and teaching job‐search techniques. Moreover, a job club is established whereby unemployed people without access to information technology may use computers and the internet for job‐hunting purposes.

Due to the current pandemic, which forced most organizations to provide services online, counselors should be prepared to shift into online counseling services. This type of work requires specific skills. If counselors use certain tools in their counseling, they should adapt them to online use, but also to the current situation, in which greater importance should be given to measures such as dysfunctional beliefs and career decision‐making problems. Nonetheless, the approach and the model used for these services will not change. Moreover, career counseling practitioners should include the following tasks in their work.

Networking with support organizations. Counselors should network with organizations that provide psychological, social, and welfare support to clients (e.g., social grocery stores, social services of municipalities, social pharmacies). Unemployed people often face a variety of other difficulties (e.g., psychological, psychiatric, social care); therefore, career counselors need to develop a wide network of professionals to whom they can make referrals. In many cases, people may already receive a state allowance or pension and so need benefits counseling from social workers in order to make informed career choices.

Networking with employers. Counselors should network within the local labor market to develop cooperation with potential employers. There are several effective techniques for approaching employers, including both establishing contact and cultivating close relationships in order to maximize opportunities for employment (Gavriil & Drosos, 2016). These techniques include (a) door‐to‐door communication with local employers to establish cooperation and inform them regarding government funding to provide incentives for hiring new staff, (b) organizing workshops regarding unemployment and the role of corporate social responsibility and inviting employers to participate as speakers, (c) approaching businesses that demonstrate corporate social responsibility activities and establishing cooperation focused on decreasing unemployment, and (d) participation in corporate social responsibility events. The establishment of regular communication between career counselors and employers/human resources managers provides counselors the opportunity to have direct information regarding new vacancies. Consequently, unemployed people with the required skills assessed by specialized career counselors are referenced for job interviews, saving time for the businesses. Moreover, career counselors may inform businesses about possible government funds that they can benefit from by hiring unemployed people. Lastly, the organization of workshops and events provides to businesses the opportunity to demonstrate their corporate social responsibility activities regarding fighting unemployment and the incentive to hire unemployed people. This networking is not aimed at replacing the individual in their search of potential employers, but at creating more favorable conditions to increase the chances for work rehabilitation.

Advocacy for unemployed people and marginalized populations. Career counseling and guidance should assume an important role in achieving the goal of a fairer society and in the development of effective policies for the work integration of marginalized populations who are threatened by social exclusion.

Implementation of the PEPSAEE Model

The career counseling model described in this article was fully implemented in the Center for the Psychosocial Support of Long‐term Unemployed People “Staying Active,” which was established in Greece during the financial crisis and operated from 2013 to 2015 (Drosos, 2016). It was created by PEPSAEE and cofunded by the Greek government and the European Social Fund.

Adopting a holistic approach, the center was staffed by specialized psychologists, social workers, career counselors, and psychiatrists to address the multiple, intercorrelated and multifaceted needs of long‐term unemployed people. The center established a vast network of over 100 structures and organizations, which offered welfare, training, legal, and other services (e.g., social pharmacies, second chance schools, etc.). Unemployed individuals were first screened by social workers, who provided benefits and welfare counseling and assessed the individuals' other needs and requests. Subsequently, they were referred to career counselors, psychologists, and/or psychiatrists, depending on their needs. In the present article, we have focused on the aspects of this holistic model that are related to career counseling.

In its 2 years of operation, the center provided psychosocial support to more than 1,200 unemployed people. Approximately 25% asked for psychiatric support, 35% for psychotherapy and psychological support, and 54% for career counseling. Despite the financial recession, more than 40% of the long‐term unemployed who received career counseling acquired a job within the 2 months of the intervention. At a 6‐month follow‐up, more than 85% were employed. The results of the evaluation survey showed that clients reported that the services met their expectations and that they were able to gain self‐knowledge and explore their career goals. Moreover, they reported increases in self‐confidence, decreases in negative feelings and thoughts, and development of effective ways to cope with the factors that were impeding their career advancement. The PEPSAEE received a special award for its innovative activities in supporting work integration of socially vulnerable groups during the 2017 International Conference “Decent Work, Equity and Inclusion” organized by the Network for Innovation in Career Guidance and Counselling in Europe, European Society for Vocational Designing and Career Counselling, and the University of Padova.

CONCLUSION

The financial crisis that succeeds the COVID‐19 coronavirus crisis is expected to have a severe impact on society, affecting most those populations with precarious jobs and those who were already threatened by social exclusion. The theme of social justice, which has become prevalent in career counseling, focuses on the removal of social, economic, and political barriers that impede people's work integration and career advancement. In the post‐COVID‐19 society characterized by economic recession, increased unemployment, and volatile labor markets, career counseling must focus on the impact of the socioeconomic environment on individuals and their careers.

The goals of full and productive employment and decent work for all citizens should become the main objectives of those national and international policies and strategies that are intended to address the impact of the pandemic on economies. Interventions that overlook social inequalities and focus only on individual challenges tend to ignore the socioeconomic context and preserve the current status quo. Career counselors therefore should work on multiple levels—with individuals, with employers, with policy makers, and within the wider social context—in order to provide effective career counseling.

In our view, career counseling can and should play a major role in facilitating work reintegration of marginalized groups and enhancing opportunities for decent work. The proposed model for career counseling unemployed people has been proven effective in the recent financial crisis, and it can provide a theoretical and evidence‐based framework for other interventions as well. Nonetheless, this kind of intervention needs national (or international) funding, and career counselors have a critical role in stressing its usefulness to the public and convincing national governments to invest in it.