>>By the Numbers: January 26, 2018

By the Numbers: January 26, 2018

Low unemployment affects Super Bowl, Amazon adopts salary inquiry ban, hiring for diversity and employee retention are top hiring challenges, and more in this week’s highlights!

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Super Bowl Staffing Not a Touchdown

The low 2.4% unemployment rate in Minneapolis, home of Super Bowl LII, is proving to be a challenge for event employers. It’s estimated that 150+ events are to kick off during Super Bowl week – cooks, dishwashers, servers, bartenders, security personnel, etc are in high demand.

“It’s absolutely crazy,” said Jerome Gerber, vice president of Award Staffing, which has turned down hundreds of staffing requests. “The companies that were coming in to manage the Super Bowl and manage all these events didn’t have a proper understanding of the pay rates they were going to need to operate within the Twin Cities marketplace.”

The organizers of one large downtown event called Gerber and asked him to help them find 1,000 workers. The pay? $11 per hour.

“We told them no. It wasn’t worth the effort,” Gerber said. “We’ve turned down every job that wasn’t paying a minimum of $16 an hour simply because of the competition that week.”

Amazon Bans Compensation History Inquiries

Hiring managers at Amazon can no longer inquire about salary history when speaking with potential U.S. candidates. “We think this is the right thing to do for our current and future employees,” said a company spokesperson in a statement.  Other tech companies such as Facebook and Google have also adopted this rule.

For more about this, check out our report, ‘Ban on Compensation History Inquiries’ where we take a look at this new legislation, where it’s been rolled out, how employers are handling it, and what folks in the field are saying.

Employee Retention Still Top Concern

Per the 2018 SHRM/Globoforce Employee Recognition Report, 47% of HR leaders surveyed stated that employee retention and turnover is their top challenge. Recruitment and culture management were second and third, respectively.

Strong Job Market Still a Challenge for Some Job Seekers

According to a recent white paper from Express Employment Professionals, there are seven top barriers some candidates are facing when looking for a job.  Two of the top ones? Transportation and childcare.

Detroit Removed from Amazon’s ‘HQ2’ List

Amazon cited ‘insufficient talent pool’ as the core reason why Detroit was no longer being considered for the location of their new headquarters.

“The creativity, the regional collaboration, the quality of the bid document, the international partnership with Windsor, all of that got incredibly high marks,” Sandy Baruah, President and CEO of the Detroit Regional Chamber, said in recounting Amazon’s feedback. “But this is the NFL. Economic development at this level, it ain’t beanbag. We were good but we weren’t good enough on the talent front.”

Workplace Experience Improvements a Hot Trend

Randstad Sourceright published their 2018 Talent Trends report which found that businesses are getting creative when faced with the current record low unemployment level. Per the report, 51% of employers are focusing on increasing workplace experience and innovative technologies.

Technology to Impact the Gig Economy in 2018

It’s no secret that with the unemployment level at a historic low, it appears to be a candidate’s market. Those candidates have options…and are looking for opportunities outside the traditional path.

‘Reskilling Revolution’ is Upon Us

Per the report, ‘Towards a Reskilling Revolution: A Future of Jobs for All’, “with 1.4 million U.S. jobs alone expected to disrupted by technology and other factors between now and 2026, of which 57% belong to women, a huge effort is needed to safeguard workers from the Fourth Industrial Revolution.”

Hiring for Diversity? There’s More to It

Per LinkedIn’s ‘Global Recruiting Trends 2018’ report, 78% of respondents cited diversity as a top priority. Another 78% of those stated they are focusing on diversity in order to improve culture. An important key to diversity is not just to hire people from different backgrounds, but to ensure they feel accepted, welcomed, included.

Ken Bouyer, director of inclusiveness recruiting at Ernst & Young (EY) Americas, states, “It is important for businesses to establish a framework to deliberately foster an inclusive environment where differences, talents, and perspectives of all people are maximized to create the highest performing teams.”

HR Manager Now in Glassdoor’s Top 5

Glassdoor released their 50 Best Jobs in America for 2018. The report takes into account salary, number of job openings, and the overall job satisfaction rating. The top 5: Data Scientist, Dev Ops Engineer, Marketing Manager, Occupational Therapist, and HR Manager.

Automation to Increase Hiring

Per a report from ManpowerGroup, 86% of employers plan to maintain or increase headcount due to automation.

CEO Salary Not Supported by Employees = Trouble

In 2018, public companies are required to report pay ratios between the CEO and employees. If the CEO salary is not understood and supported by the staff, challenges will ensue. Harvard Business School Assistant Professor Ethan Rouen warns, “When you hear the amount that a CEO makes, it is going to seem outrageous. People are going to react with passion. So, it’s going to fall on every company that has to disclose these figures to provide some explanation and give a measured response justifying the pay disparity.”

Employees Move on Due to Boredom

A Korn Ferry survey cites that the top reason employees look for a new job is boredom.  33% of respondents chose, ‘I’m bored, need new challenge’ as the reason for switching jobs.

Tech Giants Expanding to Other Locations Causes Anxiety for Competition

Amazon and Apple are in the news for reportedly looking to expand their U.S. operations. Amazon is on the hunt for the location for their second headquarters, and Apple announced that over the next five years they too will create a new campus and hire over 20K employees. These announcements seem to be signaling a trend…causing employers to figure out ways to keep their top talent from being recruited away.

Hawaii Posts Lowest Jobless Rate in December

Hawaii posted the lowest unemployment rate among all states in December at 2.0%, the US Bureau of Labor Statistics reported. North Dakota and New Hampshire followed, both at 2.6%.

Alaska recorded the highest jobless rate among all states at 7.3% in December.

U.S. Ranks Third in Global Talent Competitiveness Index

“The United States ranked third internationally in attracting, developing and retaining talent, according to the 2018 Global Talent Competitiveness Index. Canada ranked 15th. The index features 119 countries and 90 cities. The index is published by INSEAD, the Business School for the World, in partnership with the Adecco Group and Tata Communications.”

Jobless Claims Lower than Forecasted

Claims for unemployment in the U.S. decreased to 240K last week for the four-week moving average.

By |2018-01-25T22:36:52+00:00January 26th, 2018|Categories: Talent Acquisition Trends|Comments Off on By the Numbers: January 26, 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.