A new survey finds neither ongoing recruiting challenges nor the threat of a potential recession will deter Capital Region employers from moving ahead with plans to increase hiring in 2023.
The Alaant Hiring Index is out this month. Alaant Workforce Solutions managing partner Miriam Dushane says 76% of employers polled don't see concerns about a possible recession scaling back their plans for hiring and job growth in the new year.
"68% of them, so the majority of the people who responded to the survey, were either very optimistic, or optimistic about job growth in their companies for next year," said Dushane. "And 55% expect hiring to increase in the new year."
The index is based on a survey conducted between November 9 and December 11 that generated responses from 95 Capital Region hiring and human resource managers – half from companies with 100 or fewer employees, the other from firms with more than 100 employees.
Dushane says 77% of surveyed employers say they are increasing salaries to attract and retain employees, and 59% say they’ve altered their recruiting process to expedite hiring.
"41% of organizations that responded to the survey are considering remote workers to fill their open positions," Dushane said. "About 39% of those individuals said that the remote and hybrid work trends have made it easier for them to hire. However, when we asked as the new year gets underway, 'what type of policies are you going to have for hybrid remote work options,' and about 51% that responded, said they have transitioned to and will remain in some sort of hybrid or remote workplace. But the rest of them, about 29%, have mandated an in office policy for 2023. And there's still about 20% that are trying to figure out what they still want to do."
Dushane says there is a downside: 70% of employers expect hiring to be very challenging or challenging in the first six months of 2023, though 25% see the situation improving. The biggest challenge remains a labor shortage, cited by 47% of employers, more than double other contributing factors, such as salary and wage demands by 20% and a skills gap by 14%.
Dushane says the survey indicates 2023 holds promise for jobseekers too.
"There's still lots of opportunity out there, lots of companies in this area are growing, they are offering amazing benefits and packages," said Dushane. "If you are even half-considering a potential job change, there's no time like the present. Because companies are hiring, companies are planning to move forward with their growth plans for 2023. For employers, it's a weird time. They have to be very competitive and creative in their recruiting processes. So you should always use this term a lot, always be recruiting. Because even if you don't have a job opening tomorrow, you could have one two months from now, or as you start to plan for your 2023."
Dushane says the survey proves the Capital Region is a wonderful place to live and work, and offers many opportunities for businesses.
“When I got the results of the survey, and I clicked the button to see what it said, I didn't know what was going to be in there," Dushane said. "Because there's so much news out there. And there's so much information that it's sometimes hard to make heads or tails of it. But after reading the survey results, it’s kind of a gut check for me, because this is kind of how I felt it was going to be, that I felt it was building to be very positive in 2023.”
