Weekly Hourly Hiring Report 6/22/2021

Overall jobs are up 66% compared to pre-pandemic norms, seeing 5% month over month growth and 101% year over year growth. Google searches for hourly jobs are down 2% year over year.

In a normal labor shortage, employers do anything possible to attract applicants but don’t see sufficient results.  In the current job market, employers in many hourly job industries are seeing an immediate response to job postings highlighting increased wages.

Economists continue to debate whether or not there is a widespread labor shortage and it is clear that certain industries and geographic areas are struggling to find employees more so than others. Over the weekend, 8 more states ended enhanced federal unemployment benefits in an effort to combat the tight labor market. Last week, Louisiana joined the list of states opting out early, announcing on Wednesday that benefits would expire at the end of July.

On balance, the ratio of about one job opening for every unemployed worker is only slightly higher than the United States saw in the super-tight labor market of 2019. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the U.S. saw a record 9.3 million job openings in April and 9.3 million Americans were unemployed as of May.

American hourly workers are quitting their jobs at record rates as competing employers and industries lure workers with raises, bonuses and perks. The payroll processor Gusto found that service-sector employers gave out as many bonuses in May as they do in a typical December. One-time payouts are uncommon in hourly jobs, and almost unheard of outside the year-end bonus cycle.

So, where are the workers going? Some are seeking more reasonable work environments noting pandemic-induced stressors such as long hours, understaffed employers, difficult customers and reduced tips made a job not worth enduring. Some are seeking skills training and professional development opportunities. And since most American children are not in school this summer, childcare remains an enormous challenge that disproportionately impacts women.

Jobs

All industry data is from 3/2/20-6/21/21

Here are the latest job numbers by industry:

Quick service restaurant (QSR) jobs are down 20% compared to pre-pandemic norms, seeing 6% month over month growth and 3% year over year growth.

Sit-down restaurant jobs are down 41% compared to pre-pandemic norms, seeing a 13% month over month decline and 11% year over year growth.

Warehouse and logistics jobs are up 243% compared to pre-pandemic norms, seeing 29% month over month growth and 159% year over year growth.

Retail jobs are up 11% compared to pre-pandemic norms, seeing 20% month over month growth and 59% year over year growth.

Grocery jobs are up 82% compared to pre-pandemic norms, seeing 2% month over month growth and 57% year over year growth.

Hospitality jobs are up 269% compared to pre-pandemic norms, seeing 59% month over month growth and 339% year over year growth.

On demand jobs are up 154% compared to pre-pandemic norms, seeing 3% month over month growth and 215% year over year growth.

Convenience store jobs are down 18% compared to pre-pandemic norms, seeing 7% month over month growth and 7% year over year growth.

Healthcare jobs are up 93% compared to pre-pandemic norms, seeing a 2% month over month decline and 86% year over year growth.

Workers

Google searches for hourly jobs are down 2% 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.