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INTERNET POPULARITY

Anyone with access to the internet is sure to be familiar with social networking websites. Myspace and Facebook are the big two, with a number of other competitors also existing in the market. Popular sites like Twitter and LinkedIn have developed a large user base as competition heats up to gain a share of user activity.

According to site analytics from Compete.com, Facebook is the clear leader in social networking, with 123 million unique visitors and around 250 million users. Myspace is listed as having 61 Million and Twitter has 23 million. Linked In is a business orientated site, with among 40 million registered users and 12 Million unique visitors.

Another internet data company, Alexa, is well known for its measurements of the most popular internet websites. Facebook is currently the 4^th most visited internet site in the world, with Myspace 11^th and Twitter 15^th. LinkedIn also features in the top 100, along with other social networking competitors Hi5, Orkut, Friendster and Tagged.

SOCIAL NETWORKING NOTIARITY

Who can forget Corey Worthington, the 16 year old boy from Melbourne who advertised his party on Myspace? After 500 people attended and wild brawling resulting in police cars being attacked and the dog squad and helicopters being called in, the party received widespread international coverage.

That isn’t the only infamous event Myspace was responsible for. A UK teen pulled a similar stunt and caused her parents house to be trashed, and was then was left with a 24,000 pound bill from police. While over in America, a teenager was shot dead at a party also advertised on Myspace.

Parties aren’t the only problems for Myspace, with a number of incidents requiring police intervention or action in the courts. Suicides, sexual assaults and sex offender usage have been linked to Myspace activity, plus there was the incident of a US schoolgirl running off to Israel to be with their adult Myspace lover.

A number of people have also fallen foul with the law or their industry’s regulators or authorities over posts they have made on Twitter. One such example was NBA team owner Mark Cuban, who was caught by the NBA expressing his displeasure over the refereeing of a particular game. After receiving a hefty fine, Cuban cheekily remarked “can’t say no one makes money from twitter now. the nba does”

JOBS NETWORKING

LinkedIn is designed for users to link with other business professionals in an attempt to discover inside connections when looking for a new job or business opportunity. It also allows users to stay informed about their industry and contact other industry professionals for advice.

In catering to the job market, LinkedIn allows users to post jobs and search for candidates, or for users to browse for new jobs. Apart from being able to enter a specific keyword, the search feature allows a user to search for a job according to location, experience level, job title and function, and company or industry.

Another unique feature is the jobsinsider. This allows the users to search for contacts they are linked to who work at a particular company advertising a job position. Knowing someone already working on the inside can prove to be an advantage in the interview process.

The concept of LinkedIn has even spread to real life, where individuals have been seeking a way to further employment prospects and create new business relationships. Carrying on from the success of speed dating, the latest craze to hit the streets is speed networking, where individuals meet each other for short periods of time to discuss business. The LinkedIn concept is certainly thriving in tough economic times.

While LinkedIn has been specifically designed for jobs networking, other social networking sites can also provide a great benefit for companies looking to advertise positions. Users of sites such as Facebook can easily send out a message or post to all of their friends, advising them of a job opportunity and asking them if they know somebody who is interested.

A personal introduction or friend of a friend is generally more reliable than a respondent from traditional means, plus they are able to get an unbiased account of the person’s background and abilities. Another bonus is the cost and time savings, with a Facebook message being free and less hassle than handling 100 applications from a newspaper advertisement.

YOU’RE FIRED

Whilst social networking has been responsible for the creation of a number of jobs, the opposite has also occurred quite a few times. The internet is full of classic stories of employers catching out their employees and giving them the boot, mostly because of user activity on Facebook.

A couple of months ago, a Swiss insurance worker complained of being too sick to work in front of a computer and needed to go lie down in the dark. Her employer noticed that she was active on Facebook through her mobile and promptly had her contract terminated. While over in the US, a Resident Advisor was fired for being tagged in some party photos, even though they were not shown drinking alcohol.

You don’t need to be caught on Facebook during work hours or found in uncompromising photos to be in trouble with your employer. A CMS teacher was fired for posting racially sensitive comments on her Facebook profile, while an American Football team employee was given the boot after criticising team management over a player trade on his Facebook status.

A social networking account can come back and bite you even in the job interview process. There are reports of doctors and business professionals being rejected for a job application simply because of something amiss on their Facebook profile, such as photos of wild drunken nights. It is now common for interviewers to search for applicants on Facebook and Myspace before a job interview is conducted.

One such individual who found out the hard way was Inspector Chris Dreyfus, British Transport Police’s head of royalty and government protection, as he applied for a position as Chief Inspector. Unfortunately a background check revealed he had posted graphic details of his gay lifestyle and photos of him posing in uniform on his Facebook profile.

While social networking can be fun and a great way to keep in contact with your friends, users must be aware of the pitfalls of using the service. They need to be careful of what is said and what is shown on their profile, as it may come back to haunt them. But that doesn’t mean shunning the services altogether, as you never know when they might come in handy in the future.

In the current economic climate, fear and paranoia are gripping the working population. Excessive worrying over losing their jobs is leading to a change in their normal lifestyles as they attempt to compensate for the potential impact to their livelihoods.

Contrarily, former workers already on the unemployment scrapheap are finding that their lives are being reinvigorated. The unemployed status is affording them unlimited freedom in social activities and has allowed them to pursue ventures previous restricted by time constraints.

In fact, the only restriction and negative component of not being employed is the diminished financial capacity. But this perceived negative has presented the opportunity for them to renew their outlook on life and financial prosperity, by learning that having money does not always equal happiness.

We often hear about stories such as the child who is bought an expensive gift, but instead enjoys playing with the box it came in more. Similarly, the recently unemployed are starting to find out that enjoyment can be gained without the need to spend money. Rather than going to concerts, cinemas and amusement parks, they are instead turning to a day out at the beach, playing sports in the park or just plain old hanging out.

However, the luxury of being unemployed is one limited to the western countries. In the third world, being unemployed equates to not being able to put food on the table. But in Australia, the government provides unemployment payments along with a host of other benefits to individuals without jobs.

Lacking the desperation needed to become re-employed quickly, the unemployment period quickly turns into an idle mess. Sleeping in becomes the norm and pounding the pavement to find work is no longer more important as watching Oprah each day.

The unemployee quickly finds comfort in their stress free lifestyle; no longer having to wake up to an alarm clock early in the morning and battle peak hour traffic. The long hard slog each day at work is a distant memory, as are the early retirements to bed each night so they can repeat the same process again and again.

Recently a new phrase was coined to describe this period of pleasure whilst not having a job – Funemployment. With more and more people joining the lengthy job queues, they are realising that the unemployment period is likely to be an extended one. For this reason, viewing the period as funemployment is a refreshing viewpoint as they try and put a positive spin on an otherwise disastrous time.

For those with substantial savings or who receive generous redundancy payments, becoming unemployed has provided the perfect opportunity to spread their wings and head off abroad. Partaking on an international adventure is a common dream for many Australians and slotting it in between jobs is widely considered the best time to undertake the journey.

Overseas travel also doubles as a great resume filler. It is always embarrassing to try and explain the year out of work in a job interview, but for those who went backpacking in that time, having this on the resume will increase their chances of being hired.

Other overseas sojourns that may have otherwise been passed by include the volunteering trips to third world countries. Even local volunteering organisations are experiencing a rise in volunteers, as the jobless look to do something rewarding and fulfilling with their time. This provides them with an important feeling of self-worth and also helps to fill in otherwise idle time.

Gyms are also the beneficiary of an influx of new members. Gone are the days of the traditional corporate types signing up for year memberships and then never getting the time to make use of it. Nowadays, time is not a factor and a loss of a job can be the catalyst behind someone creating the perfect figure they had always desired.

Education institutions are reporting increased volumes of student applications, as people look to make the most of their unemployment and further their skills in a variety of areas. Standard degree holders are seeing this as a great time to complete their masters, while the short-term smaller courses are also seeing a boom in numbers.

Often to satisfy personal interests rather than advancing career options, companies operating leisure activity classes such as scuba-diving, sailing and parachuting are being forced to expand due to an increased demand for their services. It is clear that the motivation to return to studying is not always based on increasing the persons wage pulling power.

Many of the recently unemployed are rediscovering their passion for life by finding out more about what the world has to offer. After being swept into the workforce, often into a position or role they did not enjoy, they are now taking the time to reconsider their priorities in life and what they want to achieve through work aside from just working for an income.

The moments of silent personal deliberation often give birth to the realisation that they were not enjoying the corporate rat race type of lifestyle and were failing to live the kind of life they had originally intended.

It is true that the younger generation haven’t experienced the misery that can be caused by an extended economic downturn and that this may be shaping their present funemployment attitude. With the backing of government financial support, there is a severe lack of urgency in obtaining employment.

This generation is not willing to accept the reality of the Australian workplace environment, which often requires multi-skilling and the ability to take whatever job is on offer. Indeed, this is the mentality promoted by Centrelink, as they encourage jobseekers to apply in a wide variety of fields.

Unfortunately this mentality has not caught on as yet, with second and third rate jobs still being perceived as untenable. To switch from a corporate world position to one behind the McDonalds counter serving food would be seen as a disgrace by their peers. Pride still reigns as king in their minds, as they hold out for another flash job rather than taking the next available offer for work.

As long as Centrelink and government assistance remains, funemployment will continue to become a part of Australian culture. Not that it is overly detrimental to the economy or individuals, but rather a short term experience that many of us will go through. When times are tough, why not put a better spin on the situation and have some funemployment time?

Adam Roth

THE RECESSION ARRIVES

The international economic crisis has created a lot of fear throughout Australia, with job security under threat as the ‘recession’ word is floating around. As a result, many people have cut back spending to the bare minimum incase they find themselves joining the dole queues in the near future. But are these measures essential, or are they simply a reaction fuelled by negative media coverage?

The first step in analysing the correct response to the above question is to determine the extent of the economic downturn. After months of denial, Prime Minister Kevin Rudd has finally admitted Australia is in a recession. Although he has been quick to add that it has not been caused by his own economic mismanagement, but rather due to international economic pressures.

The word ‘recession’ is misunderstood by the majority of the public, as they associate a recession with the end of the world. When asked to define the word, the average Australian’s response would be ‘When things are really, really bad’. There is actually no commonly agreed definition of a recession; although many economists define it is a contraction in GDP for two consecutive quarters.

BUT SHOULD THERE BE A PROBLEM?

Generally, the bare essentials compose around 50% of a typical Australians income expenditure. The other 50% is used to satisfy their non-essential desires, such as entertainment, high priced electronics and fashion accessories. If they suffer a drop in income, they shouldn’t experience problems in meeting their basic living requirements.

The real problem lies with the fact that most Australians can’t stop their outrageous spending habits. They are crying foul and shedding tears because they can no longer afford their 50 inch plasma TV’s or $2,000 designer shoes. If they could overcome their pride, they would realise that selling the Prado and buying a Yaris might provide them with enough money to cover a years worth of living expenses.

Another factor is that Australians are averse to saving for tougher times. If they hadn’t been wasting their money on items such as $300 tickets for a Pink concert, just to watch someone named after a colour spew out junk for a couple of hours, they might have had savings to cover a drop in income.

QUICK TO FORGET

When a recession arrives, people are always quick to forget about the boom times that usually precede it. Prior to the current recession, Australia was the beneficiary of a massive economic boom. It seemed nothing could go wrong in those days.

In the two years preceding the start of the economic downturn, Australia’s economy may have grown by the same amount it has now contracted over the last year, effectively meaning the economy now sits at the same level as in 1996. People seem to forget that 2006 was still a good period, so it is clear that all that has changed is public perception.

LIMITED EFFECTS

Much of the blame for the negative public perception can be placed on the shoulders of the media. Every second news report mentions the word recession or highlights another round of job cuts The job cut reports are definitely factual, but the key point is not what is shown, but rather what is not shown by the media. For every round of job cuts, there are also companies undergoing workforce expansion to balance the ledger.

The world economic crisis is limited to specific industries. Many industries are suffering at the present time, while on the other hand; many industries are seeing a boom in business. Unessential luxury items such as jewellery, jet-skis and jacuzzis are no longer being purchased, and their manufacturers are doing it tough.

Conversely, food companies are not seeing a downturn in business. Woolworths massive job hirings went largely unreported in the media. Tea companies are reporting an increase in sales as more people are staying home, rather then going out for entertainment. Even education firms are seeing an increase in course attendees, as people are looking to gain skills in their spare time, rather than having an expensive night at the movies.

WHAT UNEMPLOYMENT?

In addition, the unemployment rate is not at alarming levels, especially considering that the government has a history of fudging figures to suit their agenda. The statistical definition of unemployment is constantly being changed to raise or lower the figures as they see fit. So in all reality, there is no unemployment crisis presently in Australia.

The defining factor in proving that the unemployment crisis is simply a media inspired fear campaign is the release of the latest unemployment figures. Defying predictions by economists and Treasurer Wayne Swan of a continued rise in unemployment, the jobless rate fell in the month of April according to ABS statistics, largely due to an increase of almost 50,000 full-time employees.

As the figures did not match the expected rises, we may once again see the government changing the unemployment definition to ensure that the figures increase according to their agenda. They have targeted an unemployment rate of 7-8% by the end of the year and base their predictions upon falls in the number of job advertisements, including the latest fall of 7.5% in April. However, it is not reasonable to conclude that this equates to a fall in the number of available jobs.

It is common knowledge that most job positions are filled through headhunting or word of mouth. To fall in line with cost cutting measures, businesses may simply be embracing cheaper methods of hiring, rather than spending money on expensive job advertisements. Additionally, jobseekers are more proactive in their efforts, preferring to visit their employers of choice and ask for jobs, further reducing the need for employers to advertise.

REFRAIN AND SUSTAIN

The media bias is certainly fuelling the public employment panic and creating a reduction in consumer spending. This unhealthy reduction is inflicting additional pressure on the economy. Consumers should still refrain from wasting their money on overpriced junk, but a total spending cut down to the bare essentials is over the top.

A marginal reduction is spending is more beneficial for the economy and will allow businesses producing more reasonable forms on non-essential items to stay clear of the economic downturn. At present, the fear induced public spending holdback is only ensuing a worsening economy and consumers need to strike a balance between over the top spending and total abstinence.

TOUGH TIMES

The global financial crisis has put numerous Australians under extreme financial strain. People are losing their jobs, getting lower working hours and receiving pay cuts. Business owners are seeing their profits shrink as customers and sales decrease. Overall, most people are now having to get by on less income. They can no longer maintain the same lifestyle and afford the same expenditure.

The people under the most pressure are the ‘debt junkies’. This is a term coined to describe people who are addicted to using credit to fuel their Hollywood lifestyle and material desires. Debt junkies are known for their ‘I want it now’ attitude and are constantly living above their means, with expenditure exceeding income.

When you are spending more money than you earn, you naturally get further and further into debt just to survive. A drop in income can have disastrous consequences and lead to the inevitable feeling of the world crashing down upon you. The inevitable has finally caught up with the debt junkies and the moves they make today will define their future.

Unfortunately, financial pressure does not limit itself to the debt junkies. There are a number of other groups who are presently experiencing problems. People with very low levels of debt, but are out of work for an extending period of time also fit the bill. Of course they prioritise spending on the essentials such as rent and food, often leaving personal debts unpaid so they can put food on the table.

Businesses too, are not immune to cash-flow difficulties. Rent and supplier payments take precedence over lending expenses. Often businesses may attempt to renegotiate their debt arrangements, but are met with stern resistance from the lenders, as the lenders are also experiencing financial hardship.

THE BANKRUPTCY SITUATION

When the creditors being on their backs are too much to handle, many Australians turn to bankruptcy as a solution. This current financial quarter could see the most personal bankruptcies in history. The first 3 months of 2009 saw 7,164 personal bankruptcies, which fell just 5 short of the record amount of 7,169 recorded in June 2001.

Whilst the economic situation is partially attributable to these figures, another factor is the increase in Debt Mediator firms. The competition in this market segment is hot, with an increasing number of companies looking to profit from the financial misfortune of others. The Reserve Bank has recently reduced interest rates to weather the storm, so we are yet to see the full impact of the global financial crisis and ensuing bankruptcy levels.

Debt Mediators receive a fee for each bankruptcy application they process, so they have a vested interest to promote the bankruptcy cause and advise that it is an acceptable solution to the public’s financial dilemmas. The public have been easy prey in this area, with an astounding 80% of all bankruptcies being personal and just 20% business related.

Statistically, half of bankruptees owe less than $20,000, with a large number of these for just a few thousand dollars. These are not significant amounts that would cause severe financial hardship and undoubtedly proves the point that bankruptcy is being promoted as the best option to solve debt problems, when in fact it is not always the case.

IS BANKRUPTCY THE ONLY SOLUTION?

When money is low and life gets too tough, do you throw in the towel or keep on persevering? This is the dilemma facing thousands of Australians at present. Bankruptcy is always a word on the tip of the tongue of a struggler, but of course there must be another way. So what are the options for an Australian who can no longer make ends meet?

Surprisingly, there are a number of reasonable alternatives before rushing into bankruptcy. Lenders are always willing to enter into debt agreements, rather than force the borrowers into bankruptcy. Quite often bankruptcy will mean that the lender receives nothing in return, as the borrower does not have any assets of reasonable value; hence their willingness to enter into arrangements, even for a small regular payment.

• 3 month no payment clause – Often unheard of and definitely unpromoted is the fact that under Australian law, loan contracts must contain a clause where the borrower can delay payments on their loan. The payments can be delayed, without interest, for a period of up to 3 months. Simply invoking this clause could save many Australians from financial heartache.

• Debt capping through Baycorp lodgement - If a borrower does not care about the state of their credit rating, they have another option up their sleeve to help reduce their payments. If they do not make any loan payments for 3 months, the debt will be lodged with Baycorp Advantage. After lodgement, the debt is set at a fixed value and can no longer increase from interest charges or late payment fees. This is a valuable option that is even promoted by the lenders in some instances.

• Debt agreement through Debt Mediators - Apart from the bankruptcy itself, there are other arrangements, such as debt agreement and personal insolvency agreements, which can be organised through debt mediators. Like the Baycorp lodgement option listed above, debt agreements have the benefit of fixing the debt value. Often the value will be set at a small percentage of the total debt, allowing a borrower to pay back just a portion of their debt whilst escaping bankruptcy.

• Loan Refinancing - For old loans, the borrower may be able to have them refinanced. For example, in the case of a five year car loan that has just two years worth of repayments remaining, it may be possible to refinance the loan over a five year period again. The benefit of this option is a substantial reduction in the minimum monthly payments, with two years of loan payments being spread over five years.

• Negotiating with the lenders for reduced payments - Under Australian law, the creditors have a duty of care obligation to ensure that they cater the debt repayments to the needs of borrowers experiencing financial hardship. A simple phone call or letter to the lender requesting that payments are reduced for a period of time until you get back on your feet, should be sufficient in the approval of a temporary payment reduction.

Australians have numerous alternatives to bankruptcy at their disposal, but for many people, a change of mindset is required to embrace these alternatives. The best option is to always discuss any financial difficulties with the lenders before considering other options such as bankruptcy.