As costly quitting rates rise and the employment-to-population ratio reaches new heights, employers should expect to receive more and more applications than in years past. This impending “résumé tsunami” will make finding and retaining top talent even harder.
That’s why now is a good time for HR pros to consider developing labor trends and their implications.
Trend 1: Employees are Quitting
America’s 2017 turnover rates are on the rise, given an increase in market confidence. After the New Year, workforce data reported quitting rates reached a new high of 2.2 percent.
The same Q1 U.S. Jobs report indicated more than 3 million employees job-hopped, which marked the highest turnover rate in 16 years. This statistic should bring a heightened awareness to employers, who know that employee turnover is expensive. On average, a business can spend from six to nine months’ worth of an employee’s salary to replace and onboard a new employee.
Trend 2: Saturation of Applicants
The U.S. turnover rate isn’t the only factor that will fuel the résumé tsunami. A high workforce ratio is yet another reason to prepare.
In February, the employee-to-population ratio was an astonishing 60 percent; the highest it’s been since 2009. Today, nearly 82 percent of prime-age workers (aged 25-54) are participating in the labor force.
In recent years, Glassdoor.com reported that companies have received an average of 250 applications per job. Early 2017 labor statistics foreshadow an extreme increase in the quantity of résumés throughout the remainder of the year. Employers can expect even more résumés and job applications than in years past due to the rise in American quitting rates and growing employment-to-population ratio.
Trend 3: Attracting the New While Maintaining the Current Talent
Employers should take note that these new labor trends suggest the urgency to balance the means of recruiting quality talent while maintaining your current employees’ satisfaction. To do that, it’s important for employers to understand the needs of today’s workers.
Companies may have to consider offering additional perks, bonuses, experiences and increased compensation packages to retain their top talent. But that’s not all. Today’s millennial workforce evaluates jobs based not only on perks, but if there is an opportunity to develop personally and professionally – this young population wants to make an impact and change the world.
Find out what else your employees want today by downloading What Employees Want: Overlooked Insights in Employee Engagement
Ultimately, innovative recruitment strategies and employee engagement will become a necessity to stay competitive in a market flooded with opportunities and job-seekers.
Preparing for the Incoming Storm
To better prepare for the resume tsunami, listen to our recent webinar New Labor Trends: Is Your Organization Ready? We discuss:
- creating powerful strategies to help you take control and build the workforce you need
- attracting and retaining great employees with employee engagement
- understanding the needs of prime-age workers (age 25-54)
- retaining top talent with a successful onboarding strategy
- achieving these goals with technology and talent management software
The job market forecast for the latter part of 2017 calls for a booming wave of workers. The conditions are prime to create a domino effect that will result in an immediate need to back-fill positions, a flood of applicants and a high demand for efficient teaching and training tools as new employees join the company. Are you ready?
