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[Dalek]

U.S. Employers Struggle To Match Workers With Open Jobs

In the United States, there's a record number of jobs open: around 6 million. That's just about one job opening for every officially unemployed person in the country.

Matching the unemployed with the right job is difficult, but there are some things employers could do to improve the odds.

Andrew Chamberlain, chief economist for the job site Glassdoor, says U.S. employers often complain that workers don't have the skills needed for the jobs available. That is true for some upper-level health care and technology jobs. "But for the most part, it doesn't look to be like there is a skills gap," Chamberlain says. "That's not the main reason why there are many job openings."

Chamberlain says that with unemployment so low and the U.S. labor force growing slowly, there's no doubt it is harder for companies to find workers. But he says if that were the main problem, you would see wages rising more rapidly in the economy — and that's not the case in many industries.

Part of the hiring problem, Chamberlain says, lies in company hiring policies.

Peter Cappelli, a professor at the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School, agrees. He says one problem is that companies are posting openings with required qualifications that aren't really necessary for the job.

"They're just asking for the moon, and not expecting to pay very much for it," Cappelli says. "And as a result they [can't] find those people. Now that [doesn't] mean there was nobody to do the job; it just [means] that there was nobody at the price they were willing to pay."

Jason Lorenz has seen that in his work at Human Technology Inc., a corporate recruiter that provides workers for firms in the Carolinas, many of which are parts manufacturers for Ford, GM and BMW. Lorenz says the companies come to him with a long checklist of qualifications, and he challenges them to get realistic.

"We understand that you would love to have that perfect employee, but give me a couple of things a successful candidate would look like for this specific job on this shift," Lorenz says.

For instance, he asks, do these candidates only need to show up on time, get along with co-workers and be able to lift 35 pounds, or do they need to be able to operate a computer?

Lorenz says another thing employers need to understand is that wages need to rise, even at entry levels, if they want to fill jobs. He says he is telling manufacturers, "If you are below $12 an hour, I don't know that I'm going to be the person to be able to help you with those jobs."

That's because in the past year, job openings have nearly doubled in western North Carolina where he works, and the supply of additional workers is shrinking fast.

Cappelli says another part of the problem is that employers haven't adjusted to new conditions. For years they've had their choice of workers desperate for a job. Now, the labor market has tightened, but many employers haven't responded, he says.

"Wages have not gone up despite all the talk about a tight labor market. And I think most important for the economy, we still don't see lots of employers being willing to take people in right out of school and train them for jobs," Cappelli says.

 

[Davey Cakes]

Expectations are too high.
Pay is too low for the job requirements, or the job requirements are unreasonable.
Companies don't foster talent and like to use slave labor (temps) rather than focus on retention of good, honest employees.

You have to develop a workforce, and to do so you need to give a little more and expect a little less, at least at the start.

Better pay, more opportunities for advancement or inter-departmental mobility, greater willingness to transition temps/contractors to permanent status. It seems like common sense.

 

[Lumination]

The logical result of requiring college degrees for minimum wage jobs.

Lorenz says another thing employers need to understand is that wages need to rise, even at entry levels, if they want to fill jobs. He says he is telling manufacturers, "If you are below $12 an hour, I don't know that I'm going to be the person to be able to help you with those jobs."

Hopefully this is the start of the pendulum swinging the other way.

 

[benicillin]

Well that's what happens when every entry level job demands years of experience. You can't get the job without experience and you can't get the experience without a damn job.

 

[Trojita]

I listened to this on NPR yesterday. Corporations love the power of fear on employees they gained from the recession and hadn't let go even when the country was back on its feet.

 

[Guevara]

PAY MORE and I guarantee you will fill positions.

 

[the_firewithin]

I know when I was looking for a job few years ago it was dumb too see you need like 5 yrs exp for entry level stuff....

Edit: plus see no benefits etc

 

[Epsilon-delta]

Peter Cappelli, a professor at the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School, agrees. He says one problem is that companies are posting openings with required qualifications that aren't really necessary for the job.

"They're just asking for the moon, and not expecting to pay very much for it," Cappelli says. "And as a result they [can't] find those people. Now that [doesn't] mean there was nobody to do the job; it just [means] that there was nobody at the price they were willing to pay."
...
Cappelli says another part of the problem is that employers haven't adjusted to new conditions. For years they've had their choice of workers desperate for a job. Now, the labor market has tightened, but many employers haven't responded, he says.

"Wages have not gone up despite all the talk about a tight labor market. And I think most important for the economy, we still don't see lots of employers being willing to take people in right out of school and train them for jobs," Cappelli says.

This isn't anything new, but it's good to have confirmation.

 

[Deleted member 231381]

Expectations are too high.
Pay is too low for the job requirements.
Companies don't foster talent and like to use slave labor (temps).

You have to develop a workforce, and to do so you need to give a little more and expect a little less.

This is a problem though. Imagine you have two companies, A and B, which have a fixed budget to spend, 10,000 dollaroos. A offers an 8,000 dollaroo wage and puts 2,000 dollaroos towards training. B offers no training, but offers 10,000 dollaroos. Employees will work for A, acquire training, then move to B because of the higher wage. So A cuts their training, since it makes no difference anyway. The end result is nobody gets trained.

 

[Raylan Targaryen]

There's a reason memes exist about this. Companies put out ridiculous requirements for shit pay. A door greeter at Home Depot probably requires a PhD

 

[poppedcollar69]

I listened to this on NPR yesterday. Corporations love the power of fear on employees they gained from the recession and hadn't let go even when the country was back on its feet.

Yeah it's disgusting

They're literally acting against their own self interest out of pure greed

 

[LastGamer84]

Expectations are too high.
Pay is too low for the job requirements.
Companies don't foster talent and like to use slave labor (temps).

You have to develop a workforce, and to do so you need to give a little more and expect a little less.

Won't happen as long as investors/stock market exists. They only care about immediate profits, not long term sustainability.

Companies used to be beholden to customers and employees. Now, they are bound to return ever increasing profits.

 

[I H8 Memes]

With unemployment so low you should all be looking to change jobs if possible. Right now is when you make more money. When you get down to the bottom 4% of the unemployed, well it is the bottom. Hardcore drug users, alcoholics, mental issues, assholes. When you get down to the bottom 4% it's time to poach from other companies as expensive as that is. You guys need to get out there and get poached for more money.

I listened to this on NPR yesterday. Corporations love the power of fear on employees they gained from the recession and hadn't let go even when the country was back on its feet.

See how they are when things are in their favor. None of you owe anything to the companies you work for now.

 

[Affeinvasion]

Companies used to train people to do things. Now they expect incoming employees to know how to use very specific systems as a prerequisite. It always kinda pissed me off. I graduated summa cum laude from a top 20 University. I can figure it out.

 

[entremet]

I also notice that companies don't really want to invest in people. Employees are disposable and that same mentality is seen in recruitment.

 

[hydrophilic attack]

well maybe american employers should pay better wages in order to attract employees

not rocket science

 

[Deleted member 231381]

I also notice that companies don't really want to invest in people. Employees are disposable and that same mentality is seen in recruitment.

This is a reciprocal relationship, though. Companies can only take the risk in investing in your training if they can expect you to stay around. However, once you have been trained, you can get a higher salary at another company that did not waste money on training, so you'll probably move. So companies don't take the risk in investing in you.

Company training relied on the cultural glue and social norms of company loyalty. It's not clear to me how we overcome that problem now we live in such an atomised society.

 

[Clockwork]

It's kind of funny because I have been with my employer for 13 years. I attended college but did not finish/receive my degree.

I have reviewed internal job postings where hiring managers have posted roles that are below mine from a pay/position standpoint that basically say don't apply unless you have a bachelors degree (no exceptions).

I just scratch my head...

 

[Funky Papa]

This is hardly something exclusive to America, though. My girlfriend works at one of Europe's largest car manufacturers and they were demanding engineers to cover line monkey jobs.

She's a trained accountant working on the production side as a low level manager. She recently tried to promote and found out that she couldn't, because her qualifications are not good enough to do what amounts to filling up Excel files and talking to local suppliers to check their inventories. They also want engineers for that.

Also, new hires are earning around €1 000/month. That also goes for the engineers.

It's pure fucking lunacy.

 

[Jeels]

If there are six million openings and companies have more money in the bank then employee wages need to go up.

But they aren't.

This is why Trump's tax proposal is bullshit.

 

[Epsilon-delta]

Yeah it's disgusting

They're literally acting against their own self interest out of pure greed

Not even pure greed because they would make more money by offering better wages for jobs.

It's all about selfishness.

 

[MikeHaggar]

Yeah it's disgusting

They're literally acting against their own self interest out of pure greed

I also notice that companies don't really want to invest in people. Employees are disposable and that same mentality is seen in recruitment.

Pretty much these two things. I wonder when/if corporate America is going to figure it out. The current path is unsustainable in the long run.

 

[poppedcollar69]

Not even pure greed because they would make more money by offering better wages for jobs.

It's all about selfishness.

Right right, it's a different kind of greed, the kind where you get your hand stuck in the pickle jar (I hope you guys are familiar with that analogy)

 

[pirateluigi]

Ridiculous expectations are... annoying to say the least.

I've seen job postings where there are literally 2 or 3 people in the world qualified for the job and a starting salary of less than 100k. I've seen postings requiring a 4 year degree AND experience starting out at minimum wage.

It's crazy.

 

[MogCakes]

I like to call it Qualification Inflation. The degree requirement is often just an excuse to justify keeping people in low wage positions while demanding much more of them.

 

[Davey Cakes]

When I worked as a temp in healthcare 3 years ago:

I was hired in a group of 5. After a matter of a few weeks, I was the only one left.
I saw another group of 4 get hired. They all dropped out quickly after training.
I saw another group of 15 get hired. They either dropped out or were let go for not being good enough. It was a position that required high quality control after all. Only one was left over.

I quit after a year for a better opportunity because I was one of the best temps and even received a "high recommendation" for a permanent job posting, but since I was an external employee I was completely blocked from the opportunity. I was just as qualified (if not more so) than even the internal applicants. I honestly hate how temp agencies work and I hate how I was receiving less money than I should've been with zero benefits to boot, even though I had exemplary performance.

It's like, they'd rather go through the effort of training and paying a bunch of potential flakes than trying to bring in a few good people and offer them proper compensation for good work and loyalty. It just creates a cycle of turnover.

 

[Dalek]

I also notice that companies don't really want to invest in people. Employees are disposable and that same mentality is seen in recruitment.

This is very true. They want you to come to the table with all training paid for.

 

[Wilsongt]

I think stopping with the practice if requiring A master's degree with 5+ years if experience for an entry level position making $30k/year would solve that problem.

But, employeers gotta think about those profits for shareholders, not employees overall benefits.

 

[TyrantII]

Chicago/Harvard Business School code of shareholder value / neo-liberal economics is coming back to bite them.

The good news is this offers huge opportunities for small and medium business to poach great workers and grow their market share. The bad news is the behemoths in every industry might just be big enough to keep them down because of their giant marketshares and lobbying ability.

 

[I H8 Memes]

Not even pure greed because they would make more money by offering better wages for jobs.

It's all about selfishness.

When unemployment is low enough that it is putting pressure on almost every industry then giving everyone more money at the same time is a disaster waiting to happen. Forget aboput exporting from the u.s. Companies exporting from the U.S. are already doing so at razor thin margins. And I hope you dont have any loved ones on a fixed income when the price of everything goes up at the same time.

It's not that I dont appreciate low unemployment. It's that I'm frustrated with the general populaces complete lack of understanding of the serious consequences of unemployment being too low. I'm frustrated by everyones refusal to acknowledge that our economic system absolutely fails if we dare to employ more than 95% of our people.

 

[Earthbound64]

entry level job demands years of experience. You can't get the job without experience and you can't get the experience without a damn job.

Feels bad, man

 

[Kill3r7]

I listened to this on NPR yesterday. Corporations love the power of fear on employees they gained from the recession and hadn't let go even when the country was back on its feet.

The difference is that the country is not really back on its feet but more importantly once you show a company that it can run efficiently on lean staff good luck ever going back. For example, the legal industry is vastly different today, few firms have big summer classes anymore. Firms are now relying more and more on laterals. This has a trickle down effect limiting the availability of good paying jobs. The financial industry is relying more on temps or contract work. There are savings to be had all over the place and when everyone is doing it, it is no longer seen as gauche.

 

[ClosingADoor]

Companies ask for too much experience and degrees. But on the other hand, because they can't expect people to stick around for a decade or more, it is also very costly to train them and then see them jump ship because they now have the experience. Hard problem to fix.

 

[Deleted member 231381]

The good news is this offers huge opportunities for small and medium business to poach great workers and grow their market share. The bad news is the behemoths in every industry might just be big enough to keep them down because of their giant marketshares and lobbying ability.

The exact opposite, actually. It's much harder for smaller businesses to do this because, being small, they have smaller margins and are typically more risk averse.

 

[Epsilon-delta]

Right right, it's a different kind of greed, the kind where you get your hand stuck in the pickle jar (I hope you guys are familiar with that analogy)

I am familiar with that analogy and it is spot on.

I like to call it Qualification Inflation. The degree requirement is often just an excuse to justify keeping people in low wage positions while demanding much more of them.

Basically this.

As an aside, requirements for most IT jobs are a joke. I am not even in IT, but it amazes me how expectations can be ridiculously high for an entry-level IT help desk position.

 

[Pokemaniac]

In software engineering, sometimes the job requirements are literally impossible

iDK | Kevin Who @kevinkaywho
Found a job opening that requires 8+ years of Swift experience.

Swift is a programming language that came out 3 years ago.
3:05 PM · Aug 18, 2017

It's pretty widely know that the posted requirements are often massively inflated BS.

 

[woolley]

It's definitely a problem on the companies hiring side of things. The amount of positions that I've seen posted that are entry level paying 40k or lower with the requirements of five years experience or CPA required is ridiculous. They aren't even asking more than basic accounting functions for the job. Who would take that position that fit those requirements unless they are desperate? Nobody.

 

[TyrantII]

When unemployment is low enough that it is putting pressure on almost every industry then giving everyone more money at the same time is a disaster waiting to happen. Forget aboput exporting from the u.s. Companies exporting from the U.S. are already doing so at razor thin margins. And I hope you dont have any loved ones on a fixed income when the price of everything goes up at the same time.

It's not that I dont appreciate low unemployment. It's that I'm frustrated with the general populaces complete lack of understanding of the serious consequences of unemployment being too low. I'm frustrated by everyones refusal to acknowledge that our economic system absolutely fails if we dare to employ more than 95% of our people.

The fed can't even hit their inflation targets of 2%. Interest rates are falling despite rate upticks.

GTFO'ah here with that crap.

Inflation hasn't been an issue since the 80s. The laser focus and fear of even healthy inflation has done nothing but hurt growth and wages. All because the super rich really get annoyed when their piles and piles of money sitting around get inflated away.

Like everything else, economics is about moderation. But policy has been to keep inflation as low as possible and that's led to decreasing real wages, a super charges stock/bonds market, income inequality, and business consolidation.

Shit that hasn't been great for fixed income earners as well.

The number one complaint from my grandparents the last 15 years hasn't been inflation, it's been the rate on their CDs and interest bearing accounts being absurdly low. The Fed was so worried about inflation for decades that we're close to being thrown into a deflationary era should they try to raise rates.

 

[Rockandrollclown]

Economic crash set a new normal for employers. Once people were losing jobs and became desperate, overqualification became the new norm. I got my job a few years before the crash with no prior experience and a 2 year degree. Once the crash occurred, the people hired for entry level work have 4 year degrees, tons of experience, and higher end certifications. I thank god I left school when I did because I would have never got my foot in the door.

Also, had a lengthy training period where I was trained and not really expected to be on par with full time employees yet. New employees are expected to hit the ground running. No shit you're going to have trouble filling positions when you expect everyone to already know how to do the job.

 

[teruterubozu]

A big problem is "key word" hiring. Companies don't use paper resumes anymore, they use internet forms. A huge chunk of potential employees are weeded out by algorithms and assistants before they even come to a set of human eyes in HR. Unless you use certain key words and key phrases your resume simply will not even get viewed. Human Resources isn't "human" anymore. You have to play some kind of stupid "beat the system" game these days before you even become a consideration.

 

[Apathy]

Your not going to get that guy with 4 phds and 15 years with experience to start at your company when you offer then 20k and part time hours

 

[Pai Pai Master]

Salaries in the US need to spike pretty significantly in order to fill that many jobs. Most companies are still paying employees as if we are deep in a recession.

 

[TyrantII]

The exact opposite, actually. It's much harder for smaller businesses to do this because, being small, they have smaller margins and are typically more risk averse.

Maybe. It really depends on their sales.

Supply side is bunk anyways. If you are a small business and can't fill orders fast enough as you're getting them, you're looking to bring on people and expand.

Now that's not always easy, but credit markets are a bit better now (to fund expansions) and the economy is humming along with low unemployment.

Not all will take on new risks, buy hat just means the risk/reward is greater for those that do. The demand will be filled by someone, since there's money on the table.

 

[Agent Icebeezy]

It's such a shit game to where even with my MBA in healthcare management and years of healthcare experience and in finance, I went back to school to get another bachelor's in accounting, just so I can check off that box on my resume. I teach part-time at a university and I told them as much. Have I learned anything? Of course I have. Enough to justify this cost of education? Jury still out on that. The rules to the game are shitty as the only reason I'm doing this is to stay ahead of the curve, the sometimes bullshit requirements necessary for jobs. I'm far beyond entry level so imagine the hoops I and others have to go through.

 

[demosthenes]

In software engineering, sometimes the job requirements are literally impossible



It's pretty widely know that the posted requirements are often massively inflated BS.

LOL

 

[Super Mario]

Companies used to train people to do things. Now they expect incoming employees to know how to use very specific systems as a prerequisite. It always kinda pissed me off. I graduated summa cum laude from a top 20 University. I can figure it out.

So companies should hire a bunch of people for a position that have no experience in the field, and hope the investment pays off? What if they don't like or understand the work? What if they get the training and leave? What about people already doing the work?

There's always the "this is the way it should be done" as told by the Internet. Then there's what the hiring managers will tell you. College education is great. It shows your dedication and aptitude to name a few. It doesn't mean you can lead a team of professionals.

 

[Epsilon-delta]

A big problem is "key word" hiring. Companies don't use paper resumes anymore, they use internet forms. A huge chunk of potential employees are weeded out by algorithms and assistants before they even come to a set of human eyes in HR. Unless you use certain key words and key phrases your resume simply will not even get viewed. Human Resources isn't "human" anymore. You have to play some kind of stupid "beat the system" game these days before you even become a consideration.

This too.

You are forced to tailor your resume to use the same key words or key phrases to the position you're applying for.

 

[Rockandrollclown]

So companies should hire a bunch of people for a position that have no experience in the field, and hope the investment pays off? What if they don't like or understand the work? What if they get the training and leave? What about people already doing the work?

There's always the "this is the way it should be done" as told by the Internet. Then there's what the hiring managers will tell you. College education is great. It shows your dedication and aptitude to name a few. It doesn't mean you can lead a team of professionals.

If you can't fill the position, yes this is exactly what you should do. If you treat people well and pay them well they're going to be way less likely to pack up their skillset and leave.

 

[Baraka in the White House]

Pay more, expect less.

Companies have had it the other way around for nearly a decade.

 

[Earthbound64]

There's always the "this is the way it should be done" as told by the Internet. Then there's what the hiring managers will tell you.

And then there's all the middle ground between the two.