Online opportunities to generate income have slowed to nearly nothing over the holidays. I think this is normal as businesses really hit the ground running before the holidays to take advantage of consumer focus on shopping and gift giving. Now, there's a bit of a lull. However, I do believe this will pass and advertisers will once again begin their advertising campaigns in full force.
Locally, two employers have had severe cutbacks in their employees. One large company, which employs hundreds of people, had massive layoffs. This will certainly make a dent in our local economy, but at least the company didn't send people home before the holidays arrived. However, now there will be a couple hundred people out looking for work.
The other employer is actually the public school system. They will be laying people off and not renewing contracts this spring. My older daughter just started teaching in the school system. I haven't heard from her whether this will be affecting her job or not, but usually it's "last hired, first fired" when it comes to letting people go. The only thing really in her favor is that in our state, teacher testing is implemented, which means that tenure isn't the only thing that keeps teachers in their current jobs. They must also pass a test to determine if they really know their subject area and are effective in relating it to students.
