Recent and imminent college graduates are finding it extremely difficult to land an entry-level job that can serve as the basis for further career advancement, as they compete with millions of newly unemployed workers with more experience, reported CNBC. This is if there's even a job to apply for in the first place, Many graduates majored in fields that are particularly hard hit by the pandemic, such as hotel management; many hospitality businesses are not in good shape to hire anyone at all, let alone a recent graduate. CNBC reported that even some recent graduates who had secured entry-level jobs have had those offers have been rescinded, leaving them in limbo as they scramble for a replacement.

As a result, Gen Z workers, at least those graduating in the pandemic era, may find themselves experiencing a similar hit to lifetime earnings that afflicted the millennials before them: it is estimated that those who entered the workforce amid the 2008 crisis experienced earnings losses of up to 13 percent "because recession exposures made them persistently less likely to work for high-paying employers, even as their overall employment recovers more quickly than older workers."