Pittsburgh workers share how they're navigating layoffs and the current job market

PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- Erin Birdsall, who was laid off during her maternity leave, spent hours each day applying for jobs on her computer, sometimes wondering if the tech industry would rather hire her computer.

"Honestly it got to the point, it was depressing going on LinkedIn because I had so many friends who were just like, 'I've been out of work for three months, I've been out of work for six months,'" Birdsall said.

Her entire department, where she was a tech researcher, got slashed during her maternity leave. Her son Wilder turns 1 next week, but the family already moved to cut costs.

"We needed to reduce our mortgage payment, that was the only thing we could do," she said.

While the U.S. economy is expected to add 6.7 million jobs over the next decade, new data from the Bureau of Labor and Statistics shows we could see some 600,000 middle-class jobs disappear -- jobs with salaries between $40,000 and $100,000.

Entry-level jobs like office clerks and machine operators are expected to see some of the biggest drops with the impact of A.I. and changing consumer habits leading to fewer workers needed to fill those positions.

Retail trade could also see a steep decline. Jaden Luhovey lost her retail supervisor job when Pittsburgh-based clothing store Rue21 filed for bankruptcy .

"A lot of the skills are transferable but there's still so many what-ifs," Luhovey said.

Months later, she's back and hiring for the newly re-imagined retail company .

"We had open interviews our first week and we had 380 applicants," Luhovey said.

Gus Faucher, PNC Financial Services Group's chief economist, says we could be in for a positive change in 2025.

"The Fed is trying to pull off what they call a soft landing, where we see inflation slow but without a recession and the labor market remaining strong and I think they're going to be able to do that," Faucher said.

A recent survey of small and mid-size business owners shows a majority, about 56%, are optimistic about the national economy, up significantly from about 34% a year ago.