Elmer Herschelman of Bridgewater
calls about a job.
NEED WORK!
Michigan's high unemployment rate impacts Jewish communi
HARRY KIRS BAUM
StaffWriter
A
t first glance, the numbers
seem promising. Michigan's
unemployment rate fell to 6.8
percent in June, well below the recent
high of 7.5 percent in December
2004. But with a national unemploy-
ment rate of 5 percent, only
Mississippi has a higher rate than
Michigan.
And area Jews have been affected.
Walt Tarrow has been dealing with
those facing unemployment for two
decades, and he's definitely seen a rise
in caseloads at the JVS Corporate
Opportunities Program, which he
spearheads. Since 9-11, he says, case-
loads have at least doubled. He and
Debra Edwards ofJFS looks over case files.
another specialist are currently work-
ing about 150 active cases, and about
half the clients are Jewish. Of the
20,000 unemployed people JVS tries
to help through various programs in
three offices throughout
Metro Detroit, several hun-
dred are Jewish, he said.
And it's taking them
longer to get help. With almost 10
newly unemployed people a week
contactingSouthfield-based JVS, see-
ing a career counselor for the first
time could take a few weeks.
But the help is there from JVS —
and from Jewish Family Service of
Metropolitan Detroit if issues other
than unemployment surface. For Jews,
Tarrow says, unemployment has a cer-
tain stigma attached to it.
"There are Jewish individuals who
seem to have a more difficult time in
terms of dealing with the family and
the community in terms of expecta-
tions," he said.
"I had a guy years ago,
very active in the Jewish
community in several
ways, who never
revealed to his family that he was
unemployed," Tarrow said. "He would
act like he was going to work every
day. Because of the stigma and all the
pressure, they would feel that they let
the family down."
As a result of that stigma, it was dif-
ficult to persuade local Jews to speak
about their unemployment -- on or
off the record. However, two job
hunters — a graphic designer and a
ON T HE COVER
Michael Schwartz of Troy works for a San Diego-
based firm.
customer service manager — and an
engineer now working agreed to share
their stories.
Although they come from different
circumstances, some common threads
emerged.
Jacki Lynn Cohen, a 53-year-old
graphic designer from Royal Oak, has
been unemployed since mid-April, but
it's not her first time.
After numerous career changes that
began in 1990, when she returned
from 15 years of living in France, she
has been a sales associate for the
Detroit Symphony Orchestra, a cor-
porate training adviser for a construc-
tion materials manufacturer, an
adjunct French instructor and an assis-
tant director of health education at
Karmanos Cancer Institute in Detroit.
Whether it's layoffs or downsizing,
the recession has been disastrous, she
said.
"Once you've been laid off then
hired at another place, you're the first
one on the chopping block," she said.
"Every time I'm out of work, I've gone
to JVS. When you're out of work, you
need to anchor yourself emotionally,
and one of the ways you do that is
with support groups."
Elmer Herschelman Jr. got his bad
news on May 14. He was being termi-
nated from his six-year job as a cus-
tomer service manager at a local char-
ter airline because of a workforce
reduction.
"I don't think anybody's safe," said
Herschelman, 56, of Bridgewater in
Washtenaw County. "This is the first
time in over 35 years in various busi-
nesses that I've ever been laid off, and
it came as complete surprise to me."
A colleague of his wife, Mary, who
NEED WORK! on page 20
Jacki Cohen of Royal Oak has seen several layoffs
and downsizings.
8/ 4
2005
19