--- title: Nervous About Jobs and the Economy? You're Not Alone description: Job confidence hit a 2021 low in November as Americans cut holiday budgets and brace for economic uncertainty. authors: - name: Liliana Hall role: Reporter url: https://money.com/author/liliana-hall/ bio: Liliana Hall joined Money in 2025. She is an Austin-based reporter for Money, where she covers a range of topics, including financial news, policy, banking, investing, passive income, financial planning and student loan debt. education: University of Texas at Austin at_money_since: 2025 articles: 133 covers: - Economy and Politics - Banking - Business - Career Advice - Credit - Credit Cards - Debt - Education - Health and Wellness - Housing - Insurance - Investing - Lifestyle - Loans - Mortgages - Personal Finance - Pets - Retirement - Shopping - Taxes social: - https://x.com/lilihallllllll - https://www.linkedin.com/in/liliana-hall/ editors: - name: Katherine Peach role: Associate Editor url: https://money.com/author/katherine-peach/ bio: Katherine Peach is an associate editor with a focus on news and email at Money. She didn’t always intend to write about money. She’s a classically trained pianist who dreamed of becoming an archaeologist. However, in 2007 Katherine began working in financial publishing as an editor for Agora Inc. (Apparently, unearthing ideas about improving your personal finances isn’t such a bad career alternative!) Katherine’s writing and editing work has been featured in Investing Daily, Clever, Investor Junkie, The Palm Beach Letter, Truth & Plenty, Independence Monthly, NICHE, AmericanStyle, AntiqueWeek, Millennial Money, Money Done Right, TheStreet, Sure Dividend and many others. Katherine holds a Bachelor of Arts in Ancient Studies with concentrations in Archaeology and Ancient Languages and a minor in Literature from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. She is a member of Phi Beta Kappa. education: University of Maryland, Baltimore County at_money_since: 2025 articles: 14 covers: - Economy and Politics - Banking - Career Advice - Credit - Credit Cards - Debt - Education - Federal Reserve Rate Cuts - Health and Wellness - Housing - Identity Theft - Insurance - Investing - Lifestyle - Loans - Mortgages - Personal Finance - Professional Services - Retirement - Shopping - Taxes published: '2025-12-09T16:12:46.000Z' modified: '2025-12-09T16:20:15.000Z' section: Economy and Politics tags: - News word_count: 540 canonical: https://money.com/job-confidence-holiday-spending-drop/ type: NewsArticle source: structured-blocks --- > **Disclosure:** We research all brands listed and may earn a fee from our partners. Research and financial considerations may influence how brands are displayed. Not all brands are included. [Learn more](https://money.com/page/disclaimer/). ![Photo collage of a tired and upset woman working on a laptop, with Christmas Items on Green Background](https://img.money.com/2025/12/News-Confidence-Jobs-Holiday-Spending.jpg) Americans are feeling increasingly uneasy about the economy and their own job prospects. According to a new Gallup [report](https://news.gallup.com/poll/699311/economic-confidence-slips-holiday-spending-plans-plummet.aspx), confidence in finding a [quality job](https://money.com/us-job-market-quality-crisis/) fell in November to its lowest level since early 2021. Just one-third of adults say it’s a good time to find a job — down from 44% [last year](https://news.gallup.com/poll/652250/majority-americans-feel-worse-off-four-years-ago.aspx) — while nearly twice as many say it's a bad time. That unease may stem from the fact that the [job market has cooled](https://money.com/ai-job-market-impact/) in recent months, many workers are holding onto their current positions and layoff notices have already surpassed 1.1 million — the highest level since 2020. ## Regain financial stability with the help of Freedom Debt Relief ### Freedom can start you on the path to resolve your debt, especially if you owe over $20,000. Why wait? Select your state to get started today! [Get Started](https://money.com/pr/l67257dab4e3?ap_referrer=%2Fjob-confidence-holiday-spending-drop%2F&apxa1=shrinking-job-switch-pay-premium) That turn toward pessimism coincided with the final weeks of the 43-day [government shutdown](https://money.com/shutdown-services-continue/), which delayed federal paychecks, disrupted benefits and [pushed back key economic data releases](https://money.com/cola-announcement-delay-government-shutdown/). When the September [jobs report](https://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/empsit.pdf) finally dropped on Nov. 20 after a seven-week delay due to the shutdown, it offered a muddled picture. The report showed stronger-than-expected employment growth paired with a rise in the unemployment rate to 4.4%. This mixed picture did little to reassure Americans who are already on edge. The pessimism of the Gallup report mirrors a broader pullback in how Americans view the economy. Gallup’s Economic Confidence Index dropped to -30 in November, a 17-month low. Forty percent of adults now describe current conditions as “poor,” and about two-thirds say the economy is getting worse. The index has been weak for more than a year, after improving gradually for two years from the inflation-driven lows of 2022. Confidence rebounded briefly at the end of 2024, following President Trump’s reelection, then hovered in a modestly negative range through most of 2025 before sliding further into the negative last month. ## Economic anxiety is spilling into holiday spending The shift in mood is also reshaping holiday spending plans, too. Gallup's [November survey](https://news.gallup.com/poll/699311/economic-confidence-slips-holiday-spending-plans-plummet.aspx) finds that consumers expect to spend an average of $778 on gifts this season, [down $229 from October](https://money.com/holiday-shopping-ai-bnpl-inflation/). This marks the steepest midseason drop Gallup has ever recorded on holiday spending plans — it's even larger than the $185 pullback seen during the 2008 financial crisis. High- and low-income households are driving most of the decline, while middle-income consumers have held steady. Yet despite shrinking budgets, a majority of Americans (53%) say they plan to spend about the same as last year (despite the sharp drop in projected holiday budgets). Still, many will be relying on borrowed money to make the holidays happen. A recent survey by the American Institute of CPAs, or AICPA, found that nearly [half of holiday shoppers plan to take on debt for gifts or travel](https://money.com/how-to-avoid-holiday-debt/). Among them, 79% plan to use credit cards, more than half don't expect to pay off their balances in full and many will lean on buy now, pay later (BNPL) services to fill the gap. Americans are still planning to spend, but many are doing so under financial strain and holiday pressures, reflecting the same cautious mood that's reshaping views of the job market and economy at large. ![](https://s3.consumersadvocate.org/prd/image/image/25289/medium_2e7b27ce-b30d-40a3-beef-0139ecba6b47.png) If you owe over $20,000 or more, Freedom Debt Relief can help you get back on your feet! [Get Started](https://money.com/pr/u5c2defb44d4?ap_referrer=%2Fjob-confidence-holiday-spending-drop%2F&apxa1=shrinking-job-switch-pay-premium) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "@id": "https://money.com/job-confidence-holiday-spending-drop/#breadcrumb", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://money.com" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Economy and Politics", "item": "https://money.com/economy-and-politics/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "News", "item": "https://money.com/tag/news/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Nervous About Jobs and the Economy? 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