Building A Hiring Strategy With Talent Intelligence And Labor Market Trends

2022 could be the beginning of a more long-term, positive stretch in the hiring landscape

The 2022 talent market finally seems to be hitting its groove. Labor market numbers – including job openings, applications and hires – are rising in sync as we head into the second half of the year, according to iCIMS data, drawn from our proprietary database of employer and job seeker activity from more than 4,000 customers.

Job openings are up 29% and job applications are keeping pace, up 24%, compared to March 2021. To complete the trifecta, hires are also up 31% year-over-year. This could be the beginning of a more long-term, positive stretch. 
 

The biggest shift in the labor market came in April 2021, when 3.8 million people quit their jobs – a rate not seen since the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) began to track its data. But according to the BLS, we are just 1% away from recouping employment lost during the pandemic. There's been a shift in the market in general as turnover, backfill and retention have all played key parts. 

However, there have been significant changes in the talent market, triggering new challenges and priorities from employers and workers. When we see application numbers keep up with the other indicators, it does not mean it is getting easier to recruit, but that it is not getting harder.

How the Talent Market Got its Groove Back

A wave of optimism kicked in early this year, as the gap between job openings and job applications began to shrink. February brought a dip in those numbers as job seekers began to pull back, but overall, numbers were still trending above 2021 levels. Historically, the second month of the year brings a decrease in activity so these downswings could have been nothing more than a seasonal trend. Human behavior says, “wait until January to apply.”

Now, with March’s uptick in job applications (up 24%), this may be the start of a hot talent market – for employers and job seekers. When looking at the type of workplace situations, many organizations are still open to hiring remote workers. In fact, Western states in the U.S. are receiving the most out-of-state applications, but the Midwest hires a larger portion of out-of-state applicants. Our data supports that remote work is here to stay.

Healthcare Services Hiring Challenges Continue

Despite some early indications of talent shortage conditions improving, health services employers continue to face challenges two years after the pandemic began. iCIMS data shows that at the close of Q1 2022, job opening activity in health services was up 56%, and job applications were down 11% from pre-pandemic activity levels.  
 
Despite this 67-point gap, hires were up 31% in this same timeframe. However, this may be a case of hiring to stay even. Healthcare workers are leaving jobs – and for some, the entire industry – in record-high numbers. 
Here's how some of those healthcare numbers broke down:
 

• Employers in the health services sector, on average, receive 13 applicants per opening (APO). 
• Candidates for clinical roles are especially hard to find, and job openings for these positions in Western states receive the fewest applicants in the nation at around eight APO. 
• Applicants to healthcare openings for critical roles like nurses and therapists continue to decrease, down 33% and 25% since pre-pandemic, respectively. 

With healthcare workers in such high demand, employers need to retain their workers. They cannot afford to lose a nurse because they might not find a replacement, having significant impact on the services and care they provide. 

Workforce Potential: Millennials Embrace Internal Mobility   

While employees are looking for new opportunities, they are not necessarily looking for a new employer. When it comes to sticking with an existing employer, workers aged 25-44 years old (primarily Millennials) comprise the largest share of internal job seekers. This group of workers accounts for 50% of internal job applicants. 

Keep in mind that your most engaged talent pool is likely your existing workforce. Job seekers spend 30% more time on internal job portals compared to external career sites. 

Employers may want to look within to help solve talent challenges and look for ways to keep all employees engaged with internal mobility and retention programs. Help employees to build long-term career paths with the company and remove any barriers to make it easy to search, apply and get hired for a new role internally. 

Every day, new talent trends, expectations and challenges are arising. The world of work will continue to evolve and the key to success is to continue to stay close to these trends, understand the needs of your talent and continuously transform your talent strategy to build winning teams. 

Rhea Moss is Director of Data and Customer Insights at iCIMS. Visit www.icims.com Connect Rhea Moss