Job Openings Outnumber Unemployed: What Should Companies Do?
The number of job openings has exceeded the number of the unemployed for the second month now, setting it at 7.45 million open jobs to 5.82 million unemployed, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. This is the largest margin on record – leaving a gap at 1.63 million – which is why so many employers are having a tough time finding good, quality candidates. While the number of openings in April decreased by 25,000, the number of hires increased by 240,000 and the unemployed fell by 387,000. Employers are eager to fill roles as the week’s pass, so what should they be doing in order to fill their jobs?
One of the most obvious things employers can do is raise wages. Quality candidates know their worth when they come in for interviews, so if you offer them something lower than what they expected, then it probably will not work out. Raising wages in your company improves the productivity, motivation, and overall morale in your company. In the end, don’t you want employees who want to come in and work hard to make a positive impact on the company?
Another way companies can help with the job openings to unemployment ratio is to be quick when making a hiring decision. Did you know it takes one to three weeks to hear back from a company after you’ve applied? And the job hiring process as a whole? That can take up to twelve weeks; maybe, even more, depending on how many applicants the company receives. Twelve weeks is a long time to wait for one job and, most of the time, candidates are going through more than one interview process. Some ways you can speed up hiring is letting your internal team know what positions are open and see if any of them want to make the switch to a new department. By letting your employees know, they can also dig up some quality candidates of their own through their network. To speed up the hiring process, companies can also be more selective about the candidates they bring in for an interview and reach out to those not chosen so they can move on in their job search. One last thing that will help speed up the hiring process is using a staffing company, like HealthCare Support. Hiring recruiting and staffing firms for your hiring needs may cost money but will save you tons of time because while they are busy finding and screening quality candidates, you and your employees will be doing your own work with the thought that your company is in good hands. If speeding up the hiring process seems like a tough thing to do because of the size of your company, then focus on staying in touch with your candidates every step of the hiring process so they won’t lose interest.
The last thing companies can do is improve their company culture. With millennials becoming the main group in today’s workforce, they are drawn to companies that have an awesome company culture with great perks and benefits. Some of the most common questions millennials ask during an interview are, “what’s the company culture like” and “do you like working here?” This allows them to get a feel if your employees are happy working for your company. Some of the perks and benefits that candidates are most drawn to are flexible hours, company incentive trips and prizes, unlimited PTO, gym membership discounts, healthcare coverage, working remotely, and food catering. A company’s culture makes a huge impact on one’s decision to work for a company, so in order to fill jobs, have a company culture that stands out from other companies.
With job openings exceeding the unemployed by about one million, now is as good a time as any to start thinking about what changes you can make to reel these unemployed in. Increasing wages, speeding up the hiring process, and improving your company culture are a great place to start. Partnering with a staffing firm like HealthCare Support who can guide you through the process and provide insight to industry supply and demand, salary averages and speed up new employee onboarding could be just what your company needs.