Today’s unemployment statistics continue to produce dismal numbers–disheartening figures especially for the nearly 14 million unemployed workers out there, some of whom have been out of work and searching for a job for over two years, as well as for those overworked and underpaid in their current job situations.
Often underestimated and overlooked is the mental health impact and toll this intractable job crisis has had on people suffering from the effects of unemployment. In conjunction with PBS’s Need to Know, a 30-minute PBS weekly news magazine, and its airing of a series of special broadcasts devoted exclusively to America’s job crisis, The Local Show is shining a light on local resources available for those who are struggling to get through this difficult time. Maureen Reintjes, a longtime area job club facilitator and founder of the Kansas City Metro Networking Job Club, and Dr. Mohsen Amiri, a psychiatrist with the Center of Behavioral Medicine, faculty at UMKC, a private practice, and part-time staff member at the KC Free Health Clinic, sit down with Nick Haines to discuss this crisis, what they are seeing first-hand, and what support resources are out there. Please join us for this important conversation.
As mental health resources become scarce and costly, and jobs continue to be elusive, it is vital that people know they are not alone in their struggles, that their worth is not diminished, and that there are places they can turn to for help during these tough times, and people to celebrate with when the statistics improve.
Local Resources:
Johnson County Community College Job Club
KC Metro Networking Job Club
KC Free Health Clinic
Catholic Charities of Kansas City
