Coronavirus Discussion What happened to you in 2008 the last time a recession hit?

[Jon]

These unemployment numbers coming out today is pretty shocking. Same all around the world. Younger people are being hit the hardest

A lot of the journos say that whose on furlonged are basically sacked but they don't know it yet as they would have been let go earlier if the government wasn't paying the wages

 

[Frugalgal]

Grim reading indeed...something has to change in the way the economy works...just too fragile this "global economy" when we are too reliant on everyone else. Never did economics, but did politics at school. Young people need jobs, and older people need supporting??? I am not a Brexiteer by the way. The world needs to work together to solve this one.

 

[Jon]

I am fortunate enough to be employed by the NHS and my job has been quite safe these last 20 years. For others once Furlough ends that is when things will start getting really grim and when employers will start making people redundant. People will have to start to think outside the box when it comes to survival. It is taxes that pays for public services, but if people are not earning money to pay taxes the future for the infrastructure of society looks bleak. I did think that the period of austerity was good in some ways as I think it made people think more carefully about their budgets but it didn't seem to stop people from spending on holidays abroad, shopping and going out? I think people will have to look at ways of saving some money as a backup if ever anything like this happens again, and people should not expect the Government to bail them out forever. There will be jobs that will be lost because of Covid 19, but people like us on this site need to look for alternative ways to boost their income.

Totally agree, being so reliant on other companies to bring your online income in vs finding some way of generating it yourself (ebay, blogging etc.) is something that needs a lot of thinking about!

 

[homie]

In 30 years time we may well look back and see this year with Corona and brexit as being one of the big turning points in British history and the catalyst that made this country great again.

It probably will take all of those 30 years though.

 

[Sherliarty]

I think we are in danger of talking ourselves into a recession that is worse than it otherwise would be. I hope if anything this pandemic will make us all appreciate each other, nature and this World a bit more than we have done in the past. I am never sure exactly what 'great' means as personally I never thought there was that much wrong in the first place beyond what the Government and the press kept telling us, and I take that all with a pinch of salt.

I also believe the young will surprise us with their ingenuity when it comes to making money. My own teens and their friends all already seem to make a bit of money from social media, an area I don't completely understand but nevertheless I am impressed!

I am a bit of an optimist though.

 

[Frugalgal]

I agree. I believe we just need to all have a different mindset about money and wealth. A lot of people just spend what they earn and don't really think about other ways of earning money beyond the traditional jobs. The last recession did not affect us personally because we are careful with our money and have no debt which I am proud of, but you never know when you may fall upon unexpected hard times. I am amazed at how people manage to make so much money from the internet and YouTube etc, and I do not understand it either..but they do. I am also impressed by how much people are saying on here they make from doing surveys etc!!! People will invent new ways of earning money. Sometimes I think we would be better off just bartering our skills, like I babysit for free for friends and then they do the same back and it allows us to afford a good night out without added expense of paying for a babysitter.

 

[OCTOPUS]

All this is making me realise that perhaps moving away from being self-employed is a dream, probably need to persevere.

 

[Jon]

All this is making me realise that perhaps moving away from being self-employed is a dream, probably need to persevere.

Some industries struggle in a recession while others flourish!

 

[The Reverend]

I think it's safe to say we are in a recession that will no doubt last a few years again.

What were you all up to in 2008 the last time? Did you lose your jobs? Were you earning online then?

From memory, I was working for a text Q&A company that went bust, and had just started working in local government which was making cuts left, right and center! We then had a restructure about a year or two later and VERY sadly people didn't cope with that at all and we actually had people end their lives due to what was happening...

Moneywise we actually bought a house when the market bottomed out but my sister had bought a place in bristol a few months before the recession hit and was in negative equity for quite some time!!

Scary times ahead!

In 2008 I was made redundant from the place I was working. They paid 1 months pay for every year there. I walked away with just over £10k but it felt like a fortune.

the person I was seeing at the time was worried I'd turn into an alcoholic so I was pressurised to get a job from day 1 of 'being redundant' and within a week I'd found another job (25% pay cut/hourly pay) and within 3 months of that I'd found a job that paid more than the job I was made redundant from.

I was earning nothing online - eBay was a place you could still get bargains (people were still weary of The Internet) and I would get my best bargains from Scan247 or cdwow (shipped from Jersey for no VAT!)

Those were the days!

 

[Jon]

In 2008 I was made redundant from the place I was working. They paid 1 months pay for every year there. I walked away with just over £10k but it felt like a fortune.

the person I was seeing at the time was worried I'd turn into an alcoholic so I was pressurised to get a job from day 1 of 'being redundant' and within a week I'd found another job (25% pay cut/hourly pay) and within 3 months of that I'd found a job that paid more than the job I was made redundant from.

I was earning nothing online - eBay was a place you could still get bargains (people were still weary of The Internet) and I would get my best bargains from Scan247 or cdwow (shipped from Jersey for no VAT!)

Those were the days!

Man when that Jersey loophole closed it was GOODBYE PLAY.COM AND GOODBYE TESCO DVD DELIVERY!

 

[homie]

pay)
I would get my best bargains from Scan247 or cdwow (shipped from Jersey for no VAT!)
Those were the days!

That's a blast from the past. I remember using Cdwow. I used to think they were better than Amazon back in the day.

 

[The Reverend]

That's a blast from the past. I remember using Cdwow. I used to think they were better than Amazon back in the day.

They were.

 

[The Reverend]

Man when that Jersey loophole closed it was GOODBYE PLAY.COM AND GOODBYE TESCO DVD DELIVERY!

It was a more sophisticated version of what is known as the 'Branson Loophole'!