5 Key Hiring Trends We Expect To See in 2024
/While hiring slowed in the second half of 2023, unemployment remained at record lows and salaries increased at a 22-year high rate.
In 2024, trend forecasters point to an increasing number of retiring Baby Boomers, steady hiring, and stubborn talent quit rates…in other words, a strong year for recruiting, with increased difficulty finding and keeping top talent. Here are the top 5 key hiring trends we expect to influence hiring activities in the coming year.
Continued Demand for Talent
The demand for talent will continue to outweigh the supply of jobs. This is due to a number of factors, including:
Low unemployment: The November 2023 unemployment rate was 3.7%. This historically low number means fewer people are searching for jobs than usual, and a smaller available talent pool.
More jobs than workers: Statista reports the number of job openings in October 2023 dropped below 9 million for only the second time since March of 2021. At the same time, the ratio of jobs to job seekers is at its lowest since August of 2021, at 1.3 jobs to job seekers.
Shrinking talent population: Today, Baby Boomers make up about 19% of the workforce, but that number is shrinking as Boomers retire in greater numbers. Boomer retirement rates will reach a peak this year, with 12,000 Boomers hitting retirement age (65) each day in 2024. On the other end of the age spectrum, Generation Z workers are entering the scene. The total number of Gen Z workers will outnumber Boomers in 2024, though, as a smaller generation, Gen Z will not fully replace the numbers lost by Boomer retirements.
2. Need for Speed
The imbalance of available jobs to talent will require employers to step up their hiring game to attract and retain talent. A robust, professional, and fast hiring process is essential.
The best way to secure candidates is to create a hiring process that reduces application abandonment (due to lengthy applications), interview no-shows, and bowing out of the hiring process before it is complete. To avoid this in 2024, make sure your hiring process (from application to contract) is as seamless as possible.
Need someone to review your hiring process and recommend changes that can improve your attractiveness as an employer? Red Seat can help. Our experts assist with review and recommendations to help employers put their best foot forward.
3. High Talent Quit Rates
At the height of the Great Resignation, the overall quit rate peaked at 3% in April 2022, when there were roughly 4.5 million quits in a single month. While we’re not at that historical high anymore, talent is still voluntarily quitting jobs: the job quit rate came in at 2.3% this past August.
This means the employees you are looking for are open to moving jobs, which is both good news and bad news. It’s good news because it means the highly qualified candidate you’re looking for might be open to leaving their current role; It’s bad news because your current employees might have the same mindset.
Employers should pay attention to their employee satisfaction levels and make sure they’re doing everything they can to increase employee loyalty and retention.
4. Pay Transparency
Pay transparency is a hot topic, and salary bans continue to shape how companies speak about compensation requirements.
Before hiring, employers should review the salary ban list and familiarize themselves with the intricacies of what salary bans require. Two common components of salary bans include: a requirement to post a salary range and a ban from asking about an applicant’s past salary or earnings history.
Beginning January 1, 2024, Minnesota will be among 22 states that have instituted a salary ban. Employers in the state will be required to post a pay range for their openings and will no longer be able to seek pay history from potential candidates. Not sure how this works? Reach out to Red Seat for practical tips on how to approach compensation expectations in interviews.
5. Increased Employee Retention Efforts
With high talent quit rates, coupled with the challenges of finding and securing new talent, employee retention will be a critical focus for employers in 2024. Strategies include regular communication with employees, such as soliciting feedback to help them see and strengthen any weak points in the company.
Employers will also want to keep an eye on job satisfaction and work to tailor benefits and compensation to the needs of their employee base to stay competitive in their industries. Valuing employees by creating a positive work culture, consistently sharing and communicating company values, celebrating employee achievements, and acknowledging important milestones will pay dividends in retention and productivity.
Understanding how to navigate these factors to attract and retain top talent can be difficult to do alone. If you’d like some ideas for how to improve your company culture, speed up your hiring process, and retain your current employees, the Red Seat team would love to help! Feel free to reach out to us at info@redseat.com.
