(Graphic | Courtesy of Express Employment Professionals)
Unemployment Rate
3.5%
The U.S. economy added 263,000 nonfarm jobs in September, as unemployment decreased from 3.7% in August to 3.5% in September. The Education and Health Services industry had the largest increase in employment in the private sector, adding 90,000 positions, while Government jobs decreased by 25,000.
Learn more from the recent employment report compiled by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and view the unemployment rate in your state.
Major Industry Employment:
- Construction: +19,000
- Manufacturing: +22,000
- Retail Trade: -1,100
- Transportation and Warehousing: -7,900
- Information: +13,000
- Professional and Business Services: +46,000
- Education and Health Services: +90,000
- Health Care and Social Assistance: +75,400
- Leisure and Hospitality: +83,000
- Government: -25,000
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Workforce
Wage Increase Demands Up Nearly 20% in Two Years; Benefit Offerings Lag Behind
ExpressPros.com — Sept. 28, 2022
Expectations for wage increases have jumped roughly 20% since 2020, as 70% of companies plan to offer higher salary adjustments through the end of the year. Benefits, however, will gain less ground as only 50% of businesses anticipate their offerings to increase compared to 2021, according to a survey from The Harris Poll commissioned by Express Employment Professionals.
Expectations for wage increases have steadily increased over the past two years (52% in the first half of 2020, 58% in the second half of 2020, 63% in the first half of 2021, and 69% in the second half of 2021). Yet, a fifth of companies (20%) feel there will not be a change to their wages for the remainder of 2022.
A nationwide survey from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York’s Center for Microeconomic Data reports the average “reservation wage,” the lowest wage workers would be willing to accept, soared to $73,873 in July.
Currently, more than half of companies (55%) offer paid leave, including paid maternity (39%), paternity (31%), and/or paid parental leave for parents fostering and/or adopting (22%). Other benefits offered to employees are flexible work hours (43%), flexible work location (34%), unpaid parental leave (31%), and/or the ability to work part-time (31%).
New White Paper from Express: The Chasm Standing Between Job Seekers and Employers
ExpressPros.com — Oct. 12, 2022
Express Employment Professionals recently released a new white paper focusing on the disconnect between job seekers and employers who are desperate for workers to come off the sidelines. Titled “The Great Divide: The Chasm Standing Between Job Seekers and Employers,” the report examines the most common barriers, including the following:
- Child care
- Elder care
- Unpredictable business needs
- Job training and skills
- Work history and criminal history
- Transportation and geography
- Health issues and concerns
- Communication issues
- Workplace culture expectations
- Wage expectations
“It is often assumed that people who aren’t working can’t find an open job. But in an economy where there are far more available jobs than people counted as unemployed, we know the situation is far more complicated,” Express Employment International CEO Bill Stoller said. “There are barriers standing between jobs and those who want to work. All of us need to understand these barriers so we can eliminate or overcome them as a society.”
Staffing
Temporary Employment Up in September
Staffing Industry Analysts — Oct. 7, 2022
After increasing in August, the U.S. temporary help industry continued to grow in September by adding 27,200 jobs, up from 11,600 added in August, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. With the revisions in July and August, temporary jobs were 6,500 higher than previously reported. The total temporary jobs reached 3.2 million.
The number of temporary jobs as a percentage of overall employment (temporary penetration rate) rose from 2.07% in August to 2.09% in September, after posting the same rate for four months.
Barry Asin, president of Staffing Industry Analysts said “With ongoing solid growth in temporary employment and the number of job openings continuing to significantly exceed the number of unemployed people, we believe that the environment remains positive for the staffing industry and others in the business of helping employers connect with the talent they need.”
Business
Employment Trends Index Increased in September
The Conference Board — Oct. 10, 2022
After an increase in August, The Conference Board Employment Trends Index (ETI) increased from a downwardly revised 118.48 in August to 120.17 in September. The increase can be attributed to positive readings from seven out of eight index components: “Ratio of Involuntarily Part-time to All Part-time Workers,” “Initial Claims for Unemployment Insurance,” “Job Openings,” “Real Manufacturing and Trade Sales,” “Number of Employees Hired by the Temporary-Help Industry,” “Percentage of Respondents Who Say They Find ‘Jobs Hard to Get,’” and “Industrial Production.”
“The ETI increased in September 2022, signaling that employment will continue to grow over the coming months,” said Frank Steemers, Senior Economist at The Conference Board. “However, job gains are likely to decelerate from their recent pace as the US economy has weakened as the Federal Reserve rapidly raises interest rates. In addition, most industries have recovered their pandemic-induced job losses, which is further slowing the pace of hiring.”
Consumer Confidence Continues to Rise
The Conference Board — Sept. 27, 2022
After rebounding from a three-month decline in August, U.S. consumer confidence continued to increase in September. The Conference Board’s Consumer Confidence Index increased from an upwardly revised reading of 103.6 in August to 108.0 in September. The short-term outlook of consumers increased as the Expectations Index was up from 75.8 in August to 80.3 in September. The Present Situation Index, which shows current views on business and labor conditions, was up from 145.3 in August to 149.6 in September.
The report also found that 49.4% of respondents felt jobs were currently plentiful, up from 47.6% in August; while the amount of those who said jobs were hard to get was down from 11.6% in August to 11.4% in September.
Economy
U.S. Inflation Remained High in September
Wall Street Journal — Oct.13, 2022
After reaching 9.1% in June, 8.5% in July, and 8.3% in August, U.S. inflation remained high in September, driven by rising food and housing costs. According to the Labor Department, the consumer price index (CPI), which measures what consumers pay for goods and services, decreased slightly by an annual rate of 8.2% in September compared to the same month last year. After doubling its rate in August over July to 0.6%, the month-over-month CPI continued to rise by 0.6% in September. June marked the first time in this century inflation reached 9%; however, September marked the sixth consecutive month of eclipsing the 8% mark.
Before pandemic-related issues and higher government spending, inflation was at 1.8% in 2019, below the 2% goal of the Federal Reserve.
