Wed, 02 June 2021 | employment
Amid a rapid reopening of the US economy and a huge increase in demand for workers, a new survey from The Conference Board found that businesses are having immense difficulty finding qualified workers. In fact, 80 percent of organizations hiring mostly industry and manual services workers report difficulty finding qualified workers, with 25 percent reporting it is very difficult. This compares to 74 percent before the pandemic, with 4 percent reporting it was very difficult.
The results of the survey suggest human resources departments will face four main challenges in the months ahead: recruiting qualified workers and retaining existing ones; adjusting to a world where a large share of employees work primarily remotely; addressing deteriorating employee well-being; and managing the return to the workplace.
Conducted by The Conference Board in April 2021, more than 230 HR executives, primarily from large US companies, weighed in about COVID-19's ongoing impact on both the workforce and the workplace. This online survey is a follow up to similar surveys conducted in April and September 2020.
Key findings from the new survey include:
Both attracting and retaining qualified workers is a growing challenge, especially for organizations employing mostly industry and manual services workers.
"Before the pandemic, industry and manual services workers were high in demand and short in supply. While this changed at the onset of the pandemic, as the economy reopens this trend is resurfacing—and fast," said Frank Steemers, report co-author and Senior Economist at The Conference Board. "This poses a growing challenge to companies that are looking to attract and retain this cohort of the US workforce. On the flip side, it bodes well for the workers themselves, accelerating wage growth and offering more employment opportunities."
Expect workplaces to be emptier and more diffused as remote work remains the norm postpandemic.
Increased productivity appears to have come at a significant cost to employee well-being.
"During the pandemic, employees were often working longer hours in crisis conditions. While that may have boosted productivity, that level of performance is most likely unsustainable. Deteriorated levels of employee well-being are also likely related to increased anxiety and stress resulting from multiple factors, such as the global health crisis, the economic crisis, and the lack of childcare," said Robin Erickson, PhD, report co-author and Principal Researcher at The Conference Board. "As some of these situations are resolved or stabilized and organizations make long-term decisions about a future with more remote work, they will need to continuously monitor their employee experience and holistic well-being."
As workplaces widely reopen, a "hybrid model"—part in office, part remote—will gain steam.
Source: The Conference Board