Last summer, the Great Resignation was all the talk – and it paid off, with job hoppers finding themselves a median annual raise of 8.5%. If you stayed put, that raise was just 5.9%. That window may be closing. Wage growth ticked from 8.5% this summer to 7.6% in October. That’s still more than the overall wage growth, which is 6.4%.
Unsurprisingly, retention is a top issue for HR – it’s the biggest one. In 2021, about 40% of HR professionals surveyed by Lattice said talent acquisition was a priority over the next 12 months. Only 17% of Lattice respondents said as much in 2022.
And, this issue overall is “a thing.” Nash Squared, who provide talent, noted that 70% of digital leaders globally felt they can’t keep up with tech trends because of a lack of skilled workers and, on average, digital leaders are losing about 11% of their team every year, many because the staff is looking for higher salaries.
Finally, while talking about workers, I want to highlight an opinion piece in the Washington Post. Quoting the piece.
To understand what happened, it’s helpful to divide the million Americans who were in the labor force in February 2020 into three rough categories.
There were the millions who thought they possessed a secure job, only to be laid off or furloughed as the pandemic lockdowns set in. There were white-collar office workers who continued to work 40 or more hours a week, but now from home. Then there were the workers — grocery store employees, food service workers and utility workers, as well as police officers, postal workers, teachers, and health-care providers — whose work was suddenly dubbed “essential,” without whose efforts society as we know it would cease to function.
The piece breaks down what happens to each of these groups.
The window may be closing, but it hasn’t closed. I’ll start with the opinion piece, which is a great read to dive into. It’s easy to lump workers into one large group, but the division of three matters. Most technology services companies will employ those white-collar workers, but customers may employ any of the three categories. Knowing your customer well will make a difference.
Also of note – is retention. This week’s stories continue to reinforce how hard it is to find employees, despite the distraction of big tech layoff noise. Ignore the noise, and focus on your people.