Effects on Job Displacement among Young Professionals amidst the Pandemic

I. INTRODUCTION

The pandemic had an alarming outcome on workers across the globe. The corona virus is not

only a global health crisis but also an economic one. According to World Health Organization

(2020), there are over 100 million cases affecting most countries and territories as of February

2021. Specifically in the Philippines, there are more than 500,000 cases with over 11,000 deaths.

Due to the number of cases and fear that the virus has spread, most countries have to take on full

or partial lockdown to avoid transmission. Millions of workers around the world suffered job

loss or displacement in the corona virus pandemic, but the economic impact among young

professionals has a strong disadvantage. More or less, young people are in an unfavourable

position and are likely to face unemployment (Gould & Kaasa, 2020).

Job displacement or lay off is defined as an involuntary loss of job caused by some factors

such as declining in economic activity and restructuring of a company. In the current situation,

many young workers are greatly affected by the ongoing pandemic. The widespread of the virus

cause multiple shocks amongst the young. Not only that it ruins their work and career prospects,

but also hinders their education and training that affects their well-being (Ryder, 2020). Not

surprisingly, youths are among the most affected by the latest labor market disruptions triggered

by COVID-19. The majority of young people were still at disadvantage long before the

pandemic occurred. Many young people do not have sufficient work experience, acquired job-

specific skills or invested in savings, nor have the opportunity to build employer relationship

(Inanc, 2020). Young people have been more prone to job displacement, a problem that could

significantly intensify during this devastating time.

 Most businesses in European countries have taken action in sudden layoffs to their workers.

A survey conducted by Small Business Investor Alliance (2020) identified that around 20% of

the employees engaged in wholesale and retail business lost their jobs by March, and two in

three organizations foresee more layoffs (SBIA, 2020). In higher-risk organization, young

workers are excessively affected by corona virus related layoffs.

In the Philippines, work displacement reached one-million workers as of April 2020. 98

percent of 42,000 closed establishments are reported to have applied for the P5, 000 one-time

assistance provided by Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) under the program

“COVID-19 Adjustment Measures Program (CAMP)”. According the report provided by DOLE,

almost a million workers in the public sector were either affected by temporary or permanent

closure and flexible work arrangements.

A data gathered from the local government in Negros Occidental reveals that 2,637 tourism

workers were displaced due to the corona virus (COVID-19) pandemic. Among the affected

workers were 1,218 from residential facilities, 68 from travel and tour agencies, 68 tour guides,

156 in the travel industry, 123 at recreation centres, 68 wellness, 716 in the food and beverage

industry and 220 in other facilities (Gomez, 2020).

With the rapid increase of corona virus cases over the world, there is a rise of job

displacement among affected businesses. The biggest problem that most companies faced is the

insufficiency of funds in which they can no longer provide wages to their employees. More or

less, companies have to eliminate some of their employees in order for them to continue their

operation while other companies had to forcibly close due to bankruptcy. Job displacement took

effect within businesses in order to keep their employees away from being infected by the virus.
The highlights of unemployment in relation to the COVID-19 resulted to a significant cost of life

than the virus itself. As millions of people struggle to find new work amidst the pandemic, it will

be imperative to psychologists to identify the intense personal and mental distress that results

from unemployment. Additionally, the psychological society will be responsible in giving out

perspective and guidance to researches and policymakers in trying to solve a problem (Crayne,

2020).

The purpose of this study is to identify the effects of job displacement especially to young

professionals in Bacolod City ages 20 – 34 that were greatly affected in this time of pandemic.

This is to know why young professionals are mostly ones that are laid off by companies. This

will also recognize the effects among displaced workers emotionally, financially, mentally and

other related factors. Lastly, this is to find out what they did after they were displaced.

II. STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

This study focuses to know the effects of job displacement among young professionals

during the COVID-19 pandemic in Bacolod City, especially to employees who had been

involuntarily terminated from the company.

This is to answer the following questions:

1. What are the effects of job displacement in the social life of a young professional?

2. What mental health issues or illnesses developed by a young professional who underwent

job displacement?

3. What financial struggles or challenges did a young professional encounter after

experiencing job displacement during the corona virus pandemic?

 III. SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

The findings of this study will expand the research related to this topic since this will

include the experiences of displaced workers. The rise of displaced workers are on the line but

few research has been conducted that focus on the individual’s situation after being displaced.

This study intends to voice out those individuals who had been displaced. Another intention is to

let management be aware about how displaced employees feel. This will help them gain insight

to evaluate and discuss what they can do to affected workers. Lastly, future researchers or

readers, this will provide as a need to better understand the affected workers as they go on with

their lives.

IV. SCOPE OF THE STUDY

The study aims on identifying the effects of job displacement among young professionals

in Bacolod City. The participants of the study will be the affected workers of Bacolod City

working in the accounting outsourcing company during the COVID-19 pandemic.

DEFINITION OF TERMS
 Effect

Job

Job displacement

Young professional

Displaced workers

Coronavirus – 19

RELATED LITERATURE

The purpose of this study was to discover the experiences of young professionals who

have been displaced from their workplace and what they have went through during those tough

times. The research will look into how the participants were affected by the pandemic and how

they were able to encounter it. This chapter will provide a review of related literature related to

the social and psychological effects of job displacement. The second part of the chapter will

present the theoretical and conceptual framework for the study.

Social effect

Psychological effect

THEORITICAL FRAMEWORK

Studies show that unemployment affects young adults developing confidence. Rates of

unemployment for young people ages 16 -24 in the United States are twice as higher than the

entire labour force. Young people tends to blame themselves when unemployment arises thus

increasing the chance of depression and despair. In effect, they may either remain jobless or

attain a lower paying job. Also, unemployment decreases young professional’s self-efficacy
below the individual’s average self-confidence whether or not assisted by parental support.

(Mortimer, Vuolo & Staff, 2016).

The theory of social exclusion started in the 1970s in France, and is referred to people

who were exposed by social protections and in the risk of lasting separation from the community.

The term was adopted widely in Europe that began in the 1980s when the unemployment rises

and made a threat to the national models of social integration. Social exclusion is a never ending

process which involves deprivation among the range of dimensions which influence a person’s

opportunities to relate in the society. Disadvantages in society exclusion include the living

conditions such as housing, education, salary, job and health, which lead to the possibility of

continuing an ideal standard of living and social participation. However, social exclusion isn’t

just dictated by an impartially financial situation, but also by an individual’s view of

belongingness to society. These economic and social results of unemployment are expected to

provide or assisted by the feeling of social exclusion (Pohlan, 2019). Thus, there is an effect on

young professional’s self-esteem and may affect his sociability after experiencing a job

displacement.

According the American Psychological Association (APA 2020), there is significant

effect in the mental health due to job losses. Unemployment is connected to anxiety, depression

and loss of life satisfaction which these individuals will need psychological support.

CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK

Department of Labor and Employement (DOLE) define displayed workers as a

conceptual framework comprises of three elements: (1) involuntariness, (2) permanence, (3)

exogeneity or cause of termination. Worker displacement is described as the involuntary

separation of employees from their jobs or the termination of the employment relationship, with

a lasting effect and without guarantee of re-employment to the same employer or company. It is

not affected by the employee’s job performance, work attitude, or environment and other factors

that are not related to the character of the worker. (Patriwirawan, 2018).

Using the concepts found in the literature and theories as a framework, the research

focuses on understanding the perception of displaced workers. This chapter shows the design of

the study, the research site and participants, the method of data collection and analysis

procedures, and finally, ethical considerations.

RESEARCH DESIGN

Qualitative research Wagoner (2016)

RESPONDENTS AND SAMPLING PROCEDURE

This study will be conducted through live online interview with selected participants. The

targeted participants are the laid-off workers of an accounting business processing outsource

company.

Purposeful sampling

Convenience sampling

RESEARCH INSTRUMENT

Due to the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic, it is not advisable to conduct face-to-face

interview. Instead, the tools to be used in gathering data is through online interview.

Interviews have been used to collect detailed information about a topic or subject.

Interviews are frequently used when other research instrument are deemed inappropriate.

Interviews were used to explore basic literacy skills among adults because it seemed improper to
require respondents with minimal language skills to complete extensive questionnaire

(Wilkinson & Birmingham, 2003).

DATA COLLECTION PROCEDURES

Many qualitative research rely on participant’s interview to gather data. Interviews are

the most direct and easy method of collecting specific and accurate information on a topic. The

type of interview used to gather data can be adapted to the research question, interview guides,

and the researcher’s chosen approach (Barette & Twycross, 2018).

The researcher will conduct interviews with three participants to explore the displaced

worker’s life experiences during pandemic.The interview will last less than an hour through

online interview via Messenger or Zoom. Throughout the process, the participant will be allowed

to share as much as of the personal narrative as they felt comfortable with, as long as it will be

relevant to the study (Wagoner, 2016).

DATA ANALYSIS

In qualitative research, words are analyze as data (Merriam,2009). Qualitative research is

based on lengthy interactions with the people being analyzed, which allows researches to

discover unexpected or unanticipated data, that is impossible to obtain using quantitative

methods. Data analysis refers to the process of searching and organizing interview transcripts,

observation notes, and other non-textual resources gathered by the research in order to fully

understand the phenomenon (Sutton & Austin, 2015).

The main data collection technique for this study will be through online interview.

Secondary data include from books and online sources. Interviews will be conducted based on
the questions provided by the researcher. Even so, the participants will be allow the freedom to

talk about their experiences in a way in which they were comfortable.

ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS