When the job market flipped in favor of employees during the pandemic, workers finally felt like they had some power. 

“If we had another Great Resignation,” someone posted on Reddit’s r/WFH forum last year, “Man oh man. That would be amazing. Lots of people are looking to find a new remote job and this would solve that.”

A Golden Age For Workers

“Yes, it truly was the golden age and I want another one,” one commenter replied. “For a brief moment in history I was very optimistic about the future, it felt like employees were finally getting a lot of the power back.”

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Back in 2021, job openings soared and millions walked away from jobs that paid poorly, offered no flexibility and made returning to the office non-negotiable. Companies that had laid people off at the start of COVID found themselves scrambling to hire again. As the original poster put it, “As long as you had a pulse, you'd be hired.”

Remote roles multiplied. Salaries spiked. Recruiters actively chased talent. It was a workers’ market.

Today, it’s a different story. Mass layoffs, high inflation, and fewer remote openings have people reminiscing about a time when they actually felt in control of their careers.

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The New Reality Feels Grim

Some shared their frustration with how companies handled the shift. “They have the money,” one commenter said. “My company grossed $52 million last year. Each employee is worth a quarter of a million. We all get paid under $20 an hour.”

Some workers quit during the return-to-office push and found better pay elsewhere. “Just left for a work from home with $15K more per year after my office announced RTO,” one person wrote.

But not everyone can do that. One person admitted, “I am desperately looking for a remote position and can’t believe how difficult it’s been.”

Others said a true shift won't happen without real organizing. “We need unionization and mass strikes, including and especially wildcat strikes,” one person said. “The fact that a ‘great resignation’ seemed so ‘revolutionary’ in America is just a sign of how pathetic the American people are.”

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Still, there's hope that changing demographics could create another shift. “When the economy turns around and all the Boomers retire, I have a feeling it’s going to be very hard for companies to find good employees,” a commenter said.

Until then, workers trying to make strategic moves with their careers or plan long-term financial goals should explore support tools like WiserAdvisor. The free platform matches users earning $100K or more with a vetted financial advisor, and there’s no obligation to hire. Even during tough markets, having someone in your corner can make a big difference.

“This would be wonderful but I don’t see how it could happen again any time soon,” one commenter summed it up. “We have no power because so many of us have to keep our jobs to somehow live in this economy and keep our healthcare.”

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