Weekly Hourly Hiring Report 5/18/2021

How COVID-19 is affecting hourly work

Weekly Hourly Hiring Report 5/18/21

Highlights

Overall jobs are up 61% compared to pre-pandemic norms, seeing a 1% month over month decline and 101% year over year growth. The labor shortage we face today is multifaceted. While many believe extended unemployment benefits are disincentivizing workers from coming back, this isn't the whole story. Access to affordable childcare, lingering health and safety concerns and the millions of people who reevaluated their work during quarantine are also giant contributors.

The list of states opting out of federal pandemic-era jobless programs continues to grow, reaching 21 states this morning. Some states have announced one-time bonus payouts as further incentive to reenter the workforce. Montana and Oklahoma are offering $1,200 and Arizona is paying $2,000.

The CDC released updated guidance last week allowing fully vaccinated individuals to be mask free in most public spaces—a sign that active pandemic restrictions are lifting. Large chains are quickly responding—Walmart, Costco, Trader Joe’s and Publix were among the first to announce changes to their mask policies, with Chipotle, Target, CVS and Starbucks following suit yesterday. Workers with lingering health and safety concerns will weigh mask policies when considering where to apply.

Regardless of the contributing factors, employer demand for workers continues to outpace job applicants. “For employers looking to staff up, offering a livable wage and benefits is the only way to stay competitive in the current market,’’ said Snagajob CEO Mathieu Stevenson in a recent Forbes article. 

The average American receives $387 from their state in weekly unemployment payments, which becomes $687 with the federal boost. That means, for a 40-hour workweek, the average unemployed American is getting the equivalent of $17.17 an hour—more than two times the federal minimum wage. 

Many American hourly workers are seeing the current job market as a chance to reconsider and level-up. As employers are sweetening the deal to attract workers, they know now is the time to find a great job. In addition to pay, flexible scheduling, skills training and health insurance top the list of benefits. We surveyed job seekers and employers to understand who is looking for hourly work and what they want, view the results in our most recent infographic. 

Jobs

All industry data is from 3/2/20-5/17/21

Here are the latest job numbers by industry:

Quick service restaurant (QSR) jobs are down 28% compared to pre-pandemic norms, seeing 1% month over month growth and a 4% year over year decline.

Sit-down restaurant jobs are down 7% compared to pre-pandemic norms, seeing 25% month over month growth and 53% year over year growth.

Warehouse and logistics jobs are up 143% compared to pre-pandemic norms, seeing a 65% month over month decline and a 164% year over year decline.

Retail jobs are up 61% compared to pre-pandemic norms, seeing 77% month over month growth and 109% year over year growth.

Grocery jobs are up 97% compared to pre-pandemic norms, seeing 60% month over month growth and 70% year over year growth.

Hospitality jobs are up 197% compared to pre-pandemic norms, seeing 45% month over month growth and 271% year over year growth.

On demand jobs are down 28% compared to pre-pandemic norms, seeing a 180% month over month decline and 40% year over year growth.

Convenience store jobs are up 79% compared to pre-pandemic norms, seeing 107% month over month growth and 108% year over year growth.

Healthcare jobs are up 195% compared to pre-pandemic norms, seeing 129% month over month growth and 195% year over year growth.

Workers

Google searches for hourly jobs are up 8% year over year.

The bottom line

We’ll continue to be your best resource for hourly job market insights as we collectively navigate towards our new normal and beyond.