At first, getting laid off from her job at a marketing tech firm in June of 2022 was shocking and depressing for Sam Popp, 33, who had also been furloughed from a different company briefly in 2020.

Since graduating from college a year ago, Kaitlyn Dwyer has sent out about 500 job applications but so far has come up empty in her search for a full-time position. Dwyer, who lives in Roanoke, ...