Attention Hiring Leaders!
“This is the best job market in a generation or more,” says Andrew Chamberlain, chief economist at recruiting site Glassdoor. It’s a great time to look for a job, but not a great time to find new hires. Where are all the good people?
At Staffing Solutions, our goal is the same as yours: find the best person for the position. We understand the frustrations you’re having with finding quality candidates. We also understand that no matter how hard you try, your hiring leaders are probably causing you to pull out your hair to get them to understand this market!
Today, we’re providing data for you to pass onto your hiring leaders so they might understand the reality of the difficult recruiting climate that we’re all experiencing, to ensure YOU get the pick of top talent you need!
- The unemployment rate is at 3.7%, the lowest point in 49 years. Despite this fact, hiring has not slowed.
- In July, employers posted a new record of 6.9 million job openings, exceeding the number of people unemployed.
- In the past year, the growth of the labor force has been cut in half, now at .52%.
- The labor participation rate is also declining; the rate for adults ages 25-54 was 81.8%, well below the peak of 84.6% in January 1999. To return to the peak rate would require roughly 4 million people to start looking for a job.
What this means: Staffing agencies don’t have nearly the same volume of top talent available, plus our partners are struggling to hire top talent, creating an even greater demand for contract workers to fill the void. So, when talented candidates do come along, both direct hire and contract, they’re hired almost immediately. Where the time-to-fill for a contract position was once a day or two, is now a week or two. For a direct hire position that once took a week or two to fill, it might take up to a month or two.
It’s our responsibility to convince (or coerce!) hiring managers that if a quality candidate is found, move quickly! Schedule a follow-up interview in a matter of days instead of a week or two down the line, as top-notch candidates are often considering multiple opportunities. If time is spent considering and interviewing “A” players, those candidates might suddenly disappear, scooped up by another company.
In terms of securing contract hires, we ask that you please be patient. Consider that if companies are turning toward hiring contractors in lieu of direct hires, the demand for contract applicants increases. This being said, we all know it’s not in anyone’s best interest to recommend “B” and “C” players solely because they are the only available options at the time. Remember: we share the same goal!
Hopefully, these insights can help bridge the gap between us and your hiring managers to understand the climate we’re all operating in. Finding the right fit for the position is always our top priority, as it is yours. Hang in there!
Citations
Morath, Eric, and Harriet Torry. “Unemployment Hits Lowest Rate in 49 Years.” The
Wall Street Journal Weekend, 6-7 October 2018, p. A1, A6.
Boak, Josh. “As Joblessness Falls, Skilled Workers Grow Scarce.” St. Louis
Post-Dispatch, 7 October 2018, p. A11.