Mid-career accountant struggling to find work after a month on ESD unemployment - feeling discouraged

same boat - i'm in HR with 15 yrs experience and been on UI for 2 months now. applied to like 60 jobs and barely getting interviews. something weird happening with the job market rn for sure.

I think it's your age, tbh. I was a hiring manager before getting laid off myself and companies are looking for younger workers they can pay less. They see 27 years experience and automatically think you'll want too much $$$. Try removing graduation dates from resume and only listing last 15 years of experience!

I work in career services and can offer some perspective. The accounting industry has changed significantly since 2020. Many companies now use automated applicant tracking systems that screen resumes before human eyes ever see them. Your extensive experience could actually be working against you in these automated systems, as they're often programmed to look for specific keywords rather than evaluating actual experience. A few suggestions: 1. Modernize your resume with current industry keywords (look at job postings for clues) 2. Highlight any experience with modern accounting software and systems 3. Consider reaching out to accounting-specific staffing agencies 4. Network with former colleagues who might know of unadvertised positions Keep meeting your ESD job search requirements while broadening your approach. This challenging period doesn't diminish your impressive career accomplishments.

When I was struggling to find work last year, I actually called ESD directly to ask if they had any resources for professional job seekers. The career counselor I spoke with was really helpful and connected me with some industry-specific job fairs. The problem was getting through to an actual person at ESD - took me DAYS of calling. I finally used a service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got me connected to an ESD agent within about 20 minutes. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/7DieNd3C7zQ?si=26TzE_zGms-DODN3. Totally worth it because the ESD WorkSource resources actually helped me land interviews in my field (marketing). Don't give up - the job market is tough right now but your experience is valuable!

you should look into if you qualify for the Self Employment Assistance Program thru ESD!!!! with ur experience u could probably do freelance accounting or consulting while getting benefits. they let you work on starting ur own biz instead of the regular job search requirements. my friend did it and makes WAY more now working for herself!!!

DONT FORGET that after 4 weeks on unemployment you're required to register with WorkSource and expand your job search to include positions that might pay 80% of your previous wage or be outside your exact job title. ESD will check this and can deny benefits if you're being too picky about only applying to senior accounting roles. Just something to watch out for as you hit the one-month mark.

Have you had someone review your resume? I'm a recruiter (now on unemployment myself lol) and the resume formats that worked even 5 years ago are getting filtered out by ATS systems now. Happy to take a quick look if you want to DM me - no charge, just paying it forward while I have the time.

anybody else notice that ESD seems to be checking job search logs more carefully lately??? my friend got audited and had to provide proof of all her applications from the past 8 weeks or they were gonna cut her benefits!!

UPDATE: I wanted to thank everyone for the advice and support. I've implemented several suggestions - updated my resume with current keywords, reached out to my network, and called ESD about additional resources (using Claimyr really did help bypass the phone nightmare). I've got two promising interviews next week, one from a former colleague's referral. I'm also researching the SEAP program as a potential option. Will let you all know how things progress, but I'm feeling much more optimistic now. This community has been incredibly helpful during a really tough time.