Employers across the country are facing a pronounced issue right now: too many open positions and not enough workers.
Individuals have been slow to return to work, despite available positions. Some employee-driven reasons are:
- Fear of contracting Covid-19: Some workers are simply afraid of contracting a serious case of COVID-19 at work. To some, remaining unemployed longer outweighs the risks of taking an in-person job.
- Comfortable savings: with vacations cancelled, restaurants closed, and other entertainment events cancelled, a lot of people’s “fun money” went into savings. Many also received stimulus checks and access to enhanced unemployment benefits.
- Reprioritized worker desires: employees are weighing, “is this job worth my mental and physical health?” If the answer is no, they may take time to reevaluate a different career choice.
- Continued caregiving duties: It may be more cost-effective to remain an at-home caregiver a bit longer instead of returning to the workforce right now.
The hiring environment is an “employee’s marketplace,” and employees have more leverage than ever when negotiating with employers. To make your workplace more appealing to prospective employees, consider these tips:
- Offer scheduling and work location flexibility: if operations allow, offer telework or hybrid schedules for employees
- Offer access to employee benefits: employee benefits have now become a standard employer offering. If you don’t offer a competitive benefits program, consider looking into the cost of offering one.
- Check your salaries: it’s a good practice to do an annual salary survey to make sure you are offering fair salaries for the market rate
The current labor shortage is due to several overlapping factors, many stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic. The real crux seems to be that workers are leveraging the moment to obtain better jobs. If you need more guidance on employee attraction, retention, or benefit plan options, reach out to our Employee Benefits Team at Strate Insurance Group. Happy Holidays!