Dead End Job Meaning
Definition: A professional position with no prospects for advancement.
Origin of Dead End Job
This idiom started appearing in 1900s. However, the adjective phrase dead end was already in use before that. In the late 1800s, a dead end meant a street or passage that had only one entrance and exit. This meaning is still in use today.
People had begun using dead end in a figurative sense by the 1920s. Just like a literal dead end, a person who accepts a dead-end job will get nowhere in his or her career if he or she tries to advance.
This person will have to quit that job and take another in order to climb the professional ladder.
Examples of Dead End Job
Here is an example of a teacher using the expression in a math class.
Teacher: Some of you put some notes into the suggestion box yesterday, and I’d like to address them today in class. Someone wrote that he wouldn’t need to ever use math in real life. That’s not true. Almost all jobs require you to do some math. For example, engineers, doctors, and scientists all must understand math. Jobs in retail and construction require math skills as well.
Student: Why would we want a dead-end job like in retail or construction?
Teacher: Many construction jobs pay very well. Even retail jobs allow employees to move up the ranks to become managers. Therefore, those aren’t dead-end jobs.
In this example, two friends are discussing a job interview that one of them had recently.
Monica: How was your most recent job interview?
Janice: I think it went well. I really hope I get a new job. I never would have taken my current dead-end job if I hadn’t needed the money so badly. I’ve worked there for three years now and never received a raise or a promotion. My boss even told me that there were no chances for career growth.
More Examples
This excerpt is about a woman who worked her entire life for the same company and enjoyed it.
- For those who think retail is a dead-end job, meet Betty Collette, who retired last week from J.C. Penney after 67 years. –USA Today
The second excerpt is from an article about myths about dream jobs.
- To side-step this trap, seek out mentors and see how you can model their career trajectory. Conducting informational interviews can give you peace of mind that you’re heading in the right direction and ensure that once you do get promoted, you’ll be as content as you expect (which sure beats investing years in a dead-end job). –USA Today
Summary
The term dead-end job is a way to describe work that doesn’t allow the employee to progress to a higher position.
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