September Jobs Report

The recently released September jobs report showed U.S. job growth fell to the slowest pace in 2021.

The economy added 194,000 jobs representing the smallest monthly gain since December 2020. The unemployment rate dropped to 4.8% as many workers exited the workforce. A decline in public sector jobs, primarily in schools, was the biggest factor in the weak numbers.

Many people believe the spread of the Delta variant of COVID has kept a certain percentage of potential workers on the sidelines. Others believe the government subsidies have contributed heavily to workforce reentry. And still others blame the need to stay home with children while in person school attendance remains a moving target. Regardless of your belief, employers are facing dire situations.

According to the Labor Department, there are about 11 million jobs unfilled – the highest on record. This number exceeds the number of people seeking jobs. Right here in the Cape/Jackson metro, we are facing he same issue with more openings than people seeking employment. Certainly, ramping up production is necessary as we attempt to come out of the COVID economy, but virtually impossible without additional employees.

Here is what we know for sure. It will remain challenging to hire additional workers in the near future making retaining your current workforce absolutely critical. What steps are you taking to make sure you remain an employer of choice.