system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
What is the logic behind an unemployed PhD being "stale goods on the market"?

Quite a few times now I've heard people say that you need to land a position within a year or two of receiving your PhD, because otherwise you become "stale goods on the market" and... your PhD is... worth nothing, I guess?...

Can someone explain to me how this makes any sense at all? It seems like the most utterly childish thing.
gpt
Anyone unemployed for any length of time is considered "stale goods." People think there's something wrong with you or wonder what the reason is for your not working for a length of time. You could also just take a lower position though and work up in a company.