--- title: "Laid Off Tech Worker Suggests That Unemployed People Should Sell Their Blood to Survive" description: "As the tech sector reels from layoffs, one underemployed worker is urging others to sell their blood to make ends meet." date: "2024-07-03" modified: "2024-07-03" authors: - name: "Noor Al-Sibai" job_title: "Senior Staff Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/nooralsibai" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/laid-off-tech-worker-sell-blood" categories: - "Future Society" tags: - "layoffs" - "tech industry" - "the digest" --- # Laid Off Tech Worker Suggests That Unemployed People Should Sell Their Blood to Survive ![As the tech sector reels from layoffs, one underemployed worker is urging others to sell their blood to make ends meet.]() *\Image: Getty / Futurism\* ## One-Two Punch As the tech sector reels from [round after round of layoffs](), one underemployed worker is urging others in her position to do anything — including sell their blood — to make ends meet. In an [interview with *SFGATE*](), 55-year-old marketing writer Nina McCollum said that after being let go from what she thought was her dream job at an HR tech firm last spring, finding substantial work has been a struggle. Since that fateful termination last March, McCollum has rejoined the ranks of the un- and underemployed folks in the tech sector forced to contend with increased competition and lowered wages. That layoff, however, was far from the first for the tech-adjacent writer who [went viral in 2019]() for submitting more than 200 job applications without being hired. She's gotten so good at handling the aftermath of layoffs that she's become something of an expert in it — and now, she's urging others in her position to do whatever it takes to survive. McCollum's advice to others impacted by the tech industry's pivot to AI is to, essentially, not go for broke. Instead of taking on jobs that pay too little for the heaps of responsibility they pour onto workers, she advises people quite literally sell their plasma or their belongings to keep the lights on. Ego, McCollum suggests, is the enemy — and there's nothing wrong with doing whatever job will pay the bills and not burn you out. ## Bleak Outlook As for her own prospects, the mother of one who also takes care of her ailing mother knows that the realities of her age and the responsibilities she holds make her an unattractive candidate to employers. "They want someone young and cheap," McCollum told *SFGATE*. "My chances of obtaining another great-paying \[full-time\] job are next to zero." We'd wager that doing menial side hustle tasks like [driving for UberEats]() will likely end up being as (not-so) lucrative as plasma donation, which pays on average about [$30-70 per donation](). But then again, with Silicon Valley tech execs' [obsession with young blood](), you might be able to get more if you're young or know someone. **More on the tech industry:** [*The CEO of Anthropic Has a Framed Picture of a Giant Robot Destroying a City on His Wall*]() ## Author At Futurism, I've often been drawn to unpacking the narratives that underlie technological, scientific and medical progress, with a special interest in areas of conflict and ambiguity that end up setting agendas and steering the fates of both elites and the hoi polloi. I'm a committed generalist, but I often find myself returning to work involving NASA and the private space sector, the effects of AI on media and society, and the mechanics of the pharmaceutical industry, with a specific focus on the spread of GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy. Prior to Futurism, I worked for publications ranging from Media Matters and Truthdig to Raw Story and Bustle. I'm also the author of "Myspace Scene Queens," a 2024 title in Instar Books' acclaimed "Remember the Internet" series. My work at Futurism has been cited by outlets including the New Yorker, Slate, Nieman Lab, the Verge, the MIT Technology Review, the Sunday Times, and the Daily Beast. I grew up in North Carolina, attended the University of North Carolina at Asheville, and now live in Brooklyn, New York. In my free time, I'm an avid reader and music fan; you can probably find me at a local poetry reading, concert, underground rave, or DJ set. I'm the proud parent of an ineffable orange cat named Mee-Mow. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()