It can be lonely being single, and a new report confirms what many singles are saying: being sans-partner can be especially difficult during times of an economic recession.
With taxes, mortgages and the cost of living, many singles lament the fact that they have to go it alone, and a recent report from the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis says that singles are losing jobs at a higher rate than married couples.
"Just plain scared that you're going to lose everything that you've worked for," said Jackie Solmos.
According to the report, single employment fell 4.8 percentage points from December 2007 through June of this year. Married employment dropped just 3.1 percentage points.
In August, the single jobless rate was 13.5 percent and just 6.3 percent for married people.
"It's getting to the point where you're boprrowing from Peter to pay Paul. And Peter's not very happy," said Tim Whightman, a consultant who lost his high-paying job several months ago.
Still, Mesirow Financial Chief Economist Diane Swonk cautions against rushing into any job.
"If you sell yourself short, and take too low of pay, you're going to find yourself unhappy, and maybe not performing the best you could. That said, necessity does drive some people to have to take a job," she said.
Singles say they're trying to take that advice, spending every free moment on social networking sites like LinkedIn and Facebook; any site that can get the word out that they need a job.
One professional networking site -- bigooga.com -- tries to ease the transition to employment, linking a company that needs something with a candidate who has something to offer.
