A recent article on careerbuilder.com has some interesting numbers:

* 17% of unemployed workers have received at least one job offer since they have become unemployed.
* Of those who received a job offer, 92% rejected it.
* Of those who rejected a job offer, around 50% said that the pay was 25% below what they were making at their previous job.

(The numbers are from research conducted by Personified, careerbuilder.com’s consulting division.)

The numbers raise more questions than answers:

* Are the unemployed thinking that a recovery, along with better salaries, is coming soon?
* How long should a reasonable person wait before taking a job with a 25% pay cut? 15%?
* How much should a person say about the salary they are looking for when applying for a job?

Of course, it’s hard to answer such questions because:

1. Every unemployed person has a different set of personal circumstances,

2. Unemployment compensation rules vary from state to state (anywhere from 46 weeks to 79 weeks)

3. With over 14 million unemployed workers, it’s hard to gather reliable data.

But for staffing professionals, the above numbers suggest three things:

* Beef up your search tools. The pool of people looking for work is as large as it’s been in a generation. Find ways to reach them and screen them. Facebook and LinkedIn have free internal search tools, and LinkedIn Corporate Recruiting Solutions has several tools that (for a fee) can help manage their 80 million member database.
* Be willing to pay a bit more for the potential employee who is really qualified. If they’re recently unemployed, they may be willing to forego the job in hopes that a better offer will come along before unemployment benefits run out.
* Investing in staffing software as a complete Human Capital Management solution will help you excel in everything from applicant tracking and resume management to invoice customization and web timecards.

Recent employment statistics suggest that the unemployment rate may have peaked. So here’s another idea: get ready. At some point – hopefully soon – the employment tide is going to run the other way, and staffing professionals will have to have all the tools necessary to catch the high-quality employees they will need.