Perspective

Job mobility in the States

By Masako Yamada

This week, my lab parted with one member and welcomed another. The colleague who left did not retire. The colleague who entered is not fresh out of college. As a matter of fact, they are both in their mid-30s, an age in which one might expect a man to have established a mature reputation within a company. Instead, they are both starting new careers. I think this highlights the tremendous mobility of workers in the United States.

人材の流動性が高いアメリカでは、多くの人が好条件の仕事を求めて転職する。このような職業検索サイト(www.ajb.org/)も重要な情報源となる。

At times, the rapid turnover of my colleagues has left me breathless. I joined my company about three years ago and several of my friends who joined after me have already left. Some took wise career advancement opportunities. Some fled because they were unhappy. Some understood the polite suggestion that they look for jobs elsewhere. Some were not so politely asked to leave.

This kind of turnover creates a strange kind of seniority system. In companies with lifetime employment, seniority is based largely on one's age. But in the environment where I work, "seniority" is more about being in the right place at the right time. For example, when a person moves, a younger person could occupy the hole. I feel I'ｖe been given a lot of responsibility partially because I'ｖe stayed for a few years while the people around me have changed.

This is not to say that my company does not retain its employees. On my project, I work with many veterans who have been with the company for 20, 25, or even 30 years, as well as singles whom I know will quit in three or five years. The younger population turns over every few years but the older population chooses to stay put. I like this balance of experience and energy, and my guess is that the company does, too.

My company is over 100 years old. This means that young people can trust that their short experiences here will carry weight on their resume, and older people can feel secure that the company will exist long enough for them to retire. I believe that many of my co-workers value the company name. They may decide to move to another job later, or they may be asked to leave, but at least there is the security that the company will remain.

I don't see myself working for this company - or any company - for my entire life. But I do want to establish roots before I move on. Perhaps because I attended the Japanese School of New York, where most of my classmates only lived in the States for a few years, I envy relationships that are built over a long time. I know people who work by themselves in home offices or who jump from job to job every few years, and I feel there is something restless, or even sad, about them.

After years spent working, traveling, eating and socializing together, I value my colleagues tremendously. These relationships resonate far beyond one job. "Don't burn your bridges" is an oft-repeated mantra when people change companies; the advice is always to maintain a positive note even if you hated the job or your colleagues. Reputation travels fast. While I was chatting with a vendor of lab equipment, I found out that a colleague who left on a sour note, without a forwarding address, is now working at a large company in California. Three of my colleagues used to work together elsewhere. They applied to this company independently on different projects, but they somehow ended up again working together. More than once, I'ｖe heard veteran researchers looking at resumes of potential new employees and gossiping: "I know his advisor so I'll give him a call." "I have a friend who used to work with him."

I'ｖe learned firsthand that even though Job mobility is high in the States - or perhaps because job mobility is high in the States - one cannot erase the past and start over at a new job. One never knows when one might cross paths again with a former subordinate, colleague, or boss. One never knows when one might be asking them for a new job.

Shukan ST: Aug. 5, 2005

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