More and more people are getting back to work, even if progress is slow. There were 1 million fewer unemployed workers in September, as well as job gains in industries that were hit hard at the beginning of the pandemic. Here is how employment fared last month, according the Bureau of Labor Statistics, along with five ways you can reach candidates, whether or not you’re hiring.
Employment by the numbers
- Unemployment is now at 7.9 percent overall
- Unemployment by demographic:
- Men: 7.4 percent
- Women: 7.7 percent
- White workers: 7 percent
- Asian workers: 8.9 percent
- Hispanic workers: 10.3 percent
- Black workers: 12.1 percent
- Temporary layoffs decreased to 4.6 million (from 18.1 million in April but still higher than pre-pandemic levels)
- Permanent job losses increased to 3.8 million (up by 2.5 million since February)
- 22.7 percent teleworked, specifically due to the pandemic
- 19.4 million people reported they did not work at all or worked fewer hours due to their employer closing or losing business
Tips and insights for your hiring strategy
Unemployment overall is not falling as quickly as it did a couple of months ago, especially across minority groups. Workers who are Hispanic, Asian or Black have a much higher unemployment rate than white workers – as you build your recovery plans and start to hire, prioritize expanding your candidate pool to improve diversity on your teams.
Work from home jobs are here to stay. Job seeker searches for work from home positions are up 70 percent – and there is almost the same growth in job postings for remote roles. The focus on talent is becoming less geographic-based and more about the right candidate with the right skills.
Retail is starting to bounce back and ramp up ahead of the holidays. And while this isn’t an all-clear for the recovery process, it is a positive sign for our economy, and as companies can hire the right talent quickly, we’ll continue to see this trend increase.
Optimize your application process and how you communicate with job seekers. Whether you want the right person to join your talent network or you need to improve your multi-step application, consider what job seekers are dealing with right now (like unemployment forms) and tailor your candidate experience. Simplify, streamline and consolidate your platforms to connect more easily with potential employees, especially as job seekers rely more on easy-apply methods and profiles to submit applications.
Continue to take a skills-based approach to hiring. Reduce time to hire (and help displaced workers get back on the pay roll) by looking at someone’s abilities, not only their job titles or past experience. For example, healthcare employers might want someone with empathy, attention to detail and flexibility; or delivery services need employees with great time management, organization and customer care skills. Look for candidates who can easily transition into open roles based on the skills they have developed in a variety of previous roles.
