>>By the Numbers: November 9, 2018

By the Numbers: November 9, 2018

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Unemployment Holds at 3.7%

The Numbers: The unemployment rate held steady at 3.7% while the U.S. labor market gained 250,000 nonfarm jobs in October, per the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics monthly job report. The industries with the largest job growth were healthcare (36K), manufacturing (32K), construction (30K), and transportation/warehousing (25K).

Employment Trends Index Increases in October

The Numbers: “The Conference Board’s US Employment Trends Index rose in October, following a decrease in the prior month. The index in October rose 4.6% year over year to a reading of 110.72, up from the downwardly revised reading of 110.39 in September. “After last month’s decline, the Employment Trends Index bounced back and is signaling solid employment growth through the winter,” said Gad Levanon, chief economist, North America, at The Conference Board. “The main determinants of wage growth — economic growth, a tight labor market, faster inflation and labor productivity growth — are all aligning to accelerate wage growth.””

Jobless Claims Average Falls Slightly, Continuing Claims Decrease to 45-Year Low

The Numbers: ‘The US four-week moving average of initial claims for unemployment insurance edged down to 213,750 last week, down 250 from the previous week’s average, the US Department of Labor reported. However, the previous week’s average was revised upward by 250.

The four-week moving average smooths the volatility of the week-to-week numbers. Total initial claims for unemployment insurance for the week ended Nov. 3 fell to 214,000, down 1,000 from the previous week’s level, which was revised upward by 1,000.

BountyJobs Reports: The Cost of Not Having a Talent Management Strategy

The Numbers: A poor hire can cost an organization $200K, and the cost of this ongoing vacancy can cost $7,000 per day—$210,000 every month a position isn’t filled. On top of that, 75% of the workforce already has a job. Stream our webinar with partner Cornerstone, ‘The Cost of Not Having a Talent Management Strategy‘, and avoid costly pitfalls by constructing an impactful strategy.

IT Organizations to Hire More in 2019, Cybersecurity at Top of List

The Numbers: The 2019 State of IT Careers report released by Spiceworks found that 29% of organizations plan to hire more IT staff in the new year, with cybersecurity skills as a top priority.

Healthcare Staffing Forecasted Slight Increase in 2019

The Numbers: Per a presentation shared at the Staffing Industry Analysts’ Healthcare Staffing Summit, U.S. healthcare temporary staffing revenue grew 7% in 2017 to $16.2 billion which is down from a rate of 15% in 2016. The growth rate is to rise to 4% in 2019, up from 3% in 2018.

Job Openings Fall from Record High

The Numbers:  “The number of US job openings fell in September from a record-high set in August, and the number of hires and separations were both little changed, according to data released today by the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. There were 7.0 million job openings in September, up 12.5% year over year but down from a revised series high of 7.3 million in August.”

The Freelancer Workforce Increases by 3.7 Million in Past 5 Years

The Numbers: Per the study ‘Freelancing in America: 2018’ from Upwork and Freelancers Union, there are 56.7 million freelance workers – an increase of 3.7 million in five years. The average number of hours worked per week by U.S. freelancers went from 998 million in 2015 to 1 billion in 2018. 64% of freelancers find their jobs online, which as jumped 22 points since 2014.

Hiring Talent for Megacities is New Challenge

The Numbers: Many employers are targeting candidates in rising megacities – the new report from Mercer, ‘People First: Driving Growth in Emerging Megacities’, looks at the factors that are of value to workers living in these cities. Looking at the four main decision-making factors of human, health, money, and work, the study found that employees ranked life satisfaction twice as important as employers did. Employers ranked job and career opportunities as most important.

One-Third of Workers Feel as Though They Belong

The Numbers: A third of workers feel they most belong in their workplace, compared t0 62% who feel that way at home, per EY’s ‘Belonging Barometer’ study. About 40% of respondents have the ‘greatest feeling of belonging when colleagues regularly check to see how they’re doing, both personally and professionally.’

Former Employees Can be Top Job Candidates

The Numbers: To keep ahead of the talent shortage, many organizations are looking to company alumni and workforce returnees for strong candidates per a report from Boston Consulting Group. For example, about 43% of highly qualified women who have kids will take a leave from their careers – sourcing these workers can supply trained and experienced candidates.

Job Seekers Impacting Candidate Experience

The Numbers: 68% of respondents said they ‘believe the way employers treat job seekers reflects the way they treat employees,’ per a new survey from CareerBuilder and SilkRoad. 20% of job seekers will spend 10 minutes or less filling out a job application, and more than 80% expect to receive a clear interview and hiring process timeline.

Retail Workers Want a Job that Fit Their Lives

The Numbers: New research from ManpowerGroup and the Retail Industry Leaders Association finds that retail workers want a job that fits into their lives, rather than working their lives around their job. 52% of respondents ranked benefits as a top factor when considering a job. 92% of retail workers see the trust between employee-employer as the number one factor when deciding where to work.

Temp Jobs Slow Down in October

The Numbers: U.S. temporary help services jobs rose by 2.2% in October when compared with last year, per the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. That’s down from a yearly difference of 2.8% in September and is the slowest year-over-year growth rate this year.

IT and Industrial Sectors Drive Temp Revenue Growth in September

The Numbers: Per the Staffing Industry Analysts’ Pulse report survey, U.S. temporary staffing revenue growth stayed at a median 9% yearly change in September from August. “Temporary staffing revenue continued to show strong growth in September, with IT and industrial staffing sectors as major drivers of growth,” SIA Research Analyst Sree Thiyagarajan said.

U.S. Private Sector Job Growth Increases in October

The Numbers: The U.S. private sector added 227,000 jobs in October per the ADP National Employment Report, which is up from 218,000 in September and 162,000 in August.  “The job market bounced back strongly last month despite being hit by back-to-back hurricanes,” Mark Zandi, chief economist of Moody’s Analytics, said. “Testimonial to the robust employment picture is the broad-based gains in jobs across industries. The only blemish is the struggles small businesses are having filling open job positions.”

Amazon May Split HQ2 Among Cities Due to Talent Shortage

The Numbers: Amazon may split HQ2 between two cities in order to better source tech talent. The cities that seem to be most apt to be chosen at this point are rumored to be Crystal City in Arlington VA and Long Island City within Queens, NY.

Majority of Veteran Job Searches Center on Three Industries

The Numbers: Per the 2018 Veteran Hiring survey by Monster and Military.com almost 50% of job searches from veteran after leaving active duty focus on three industries: technology/information services at 17%, defense technologies at 16%, and government at 15%. Almost 70% of respondents felt they have not ‘found work at a comparable level to their military service’.

U.S. Nonmanufacturing Activity Decreases in October

The Numbers: “Economic activity in the US nonmanufacturing sector decelerated in October, according to the Institute for Supply Management’s nonmanufacturing index, released today. ISM’s nonmanufacturing index fell to a reading of 60.3 in October from a reading of 61.6 in September. Readings above 50 generally indicate improving conditions.”

Amazon Hiring Fewer Holiday Warehouse Workers in 2018

The Numbers: Amazon plans to hire about 100,000 holiday workers this season, down from 120,000 in 2017 and 2016. Analysts cite the increase in automated warehouse operations as a possible reason for the decrease in need for additional staff.

Amazon Hiring Thousands of Seasonal Drivers

The Numbers: While hiring for seasonal warehouse workers is down, the company is hiring thousands of full-time seasonal drivers to deliver packages to Prime members. This surpasses the amount of driver hires made by FedEx and UPS.

Employees Work Harder and Longer if Job is Meaningful

The Numbers: A new study from Betterup finds that employees will be loyal if the work is meaningful. 90% of respondents would let go 23% of their pay (an average of $21,000 a year) to have meaningful work. As well, these employees will stay on the job 7.4 months longer.

Top Employers for Veterans

The Numbers: Monster and Military.com released a list of top employers for veterans. The companies ‘recognize the value of hiring veterans and taking the lead in innovative program development for ex-military men and women’. 94% of veterans look for jobs after the military, per the survey. Two-thirds prepared for a job before leaving active duty, while 63% spent three months or less preparing for their next job. Some of the top employers include:

  • ManTech
  • CACI International Inc.
  • U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP)
  • Booz Allen Hamilton
  • PRISM INC.

Most White-Collar Workers Perform ‘Soul-Crushing’ Work

The Numbers: Half of the respondents of a Conversica poll stated they spend much of their days at work doing repetitive tasks bordering on ‘drudgery’, that can negatively impact their emotional well-being. 80% of respondents stated aspects of their job were below their skills level and 62% said their work has a ‘significant amount of drudgery’.

Uber to Pay 100% of College Tuition for Top Drivers

The Numbers: Uber has launched Uber Pro, a pilot program in eight cities in the U.S. that will offer incentives such as higher earnings and 100% tuition coverage.

HR Leaders Playing Catch-Up as Hiring Non-Traditional Workers Increases

The Numbers: A report from Allegis Group, ‘The New Meaning of Talent: Adapting to the Work and the Workforce of Tomorrow’ finds that companies are working with outdated employment models in this tight employment market filled with talent shortages and market changes. 44% of organizations still ‘fall short of maximizing talent’. 90% of HR leaders stated they embrace digital practices such as flexible scheduling and remote work but only 15% have fully adopted them.

Disengaged Workers May Not Be Unmotivated

The Numbers: Workers that are highly motivated tend to ‘check out’ of work for a total of six weeks every year per a study by Ring Central. More than 90% stated they were ‘motivated and driven workers’. 50% selected ‘very motivated’ and 88% stated they were ‘committed to doing their best work’. Even the most motivated check out at some point during the day – usually for an hour in addition to lunch breaks and scheduled rest periods.

‘Pledge to America’s Workers’ to Create Training Opportunities

The Numbers: ‘Pledge to America’s Workers’ from the Trump administration is forecasted to create at least 6 million training opportunities, per the White House. Walmart was one of the first to participate, pledging 1 million opportunities, FedEx pledged 500,000 and IBM pledged 100,000.

Colleges and University Reevaluating Curriculum in Response to Employment Market

The Numbers: Emerging technologies are impacting the U.S. job market with some estimating automation could ‘displace as many as 30% of workers internationally by 2030. A panel session at the annual Educause conference focused on how some colleges and universities are reevaluating how they design their curriculum and preparing workers for the changing economy.

Minneapolis Area Has Lowest Jobless Rate

The Numbers: The Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington area in Minnesota and Wisconsin posted the lowest unemployment rate among all large, US metropolitan areas in September at 2.2%, the US Bureau of Labor Statistics announced today. The New Orleans-Metairie area in Louisiana posted the highest jobless rate among large metropolitan areas in September at 4.8%, followed by the Las Vegas-Henderson-Paradise area in Nevada at 4.7%.

Arkansas and Missouri Approve Highest Minimum Wage

The Numbers: Voters approved incremental raises to the current minimum wage in Arkansas and Missouri to $11 and $12 an hour, respectively, by 2021 and 2023. Comparatively, the federal government requires the rate to be at least $7.25.

By |2018-11-09T16:26:02+00:00November 9th, 2018|Categories: Talent Acquisition Trends|Comments Off on By the Numbers: November 9, 2018

About the Author:

Erin Geiger is a seasoned Content, Editorial, and Product Engagement professional with two decades of experience creating content as well as overall content direction and strategy. Her background stems from a variety of online verticals ranging from start-ups to Fortune 500 corporations.