My experiences say YES.

Unfortunately, those are the facts. Being unemployed or having gaps in ones employment record makes a candidate appear suspect. It's almost as bad when ones past employers go out of business, which makes access to your performance record impossible. And of course; there is the matter of being highly trained on the job, but then finding those positions now require certification you lack.

When it becomes a difficult matter to verify a candidates capabilities, it is logical that a busy HR person will simply move on to the next resume in the stack. So even those who are diligent to learn new skills during time away from the workplace suffer from the gaps in their work record. And the experiences of folks I know back this up.