Hiring’s still hot! But…let’s not become complacent.
U.S. employers added more than 300,000 jobs in September (these are the latest job figures available as of this writing.) And this is AFTER many have said for some time that we’re headed for a slowdown.
While a recession hasn’t appeared, this is not late-2020 when employers practically begged workers to work for them. In fact, some experts predict that by the time you read this in November, the (September) “U.S. jobs report may be the last to show solid hiring before a sharp slowdown.” The U.S. economy added 336,000 jobs in September, which rather surprised some economists, as it was “nearly twice the number expected.”
Yet – oh, yet! – some economic pundits are predicting a recession later this year or in early 2024. Who’s correct? As the saying goes, “only time will tell.”
Let all of this “not knowing” serve as a reminder to us all:
Never, EVER become complacent when it comes to the job market!
Even if we don’t move into a recession this year or next, another one WILL arrive someday (they always do).
There also are some non-economic things to think about:
- We still don’t know how AI is going to affect the job market over the long run.
- Certain skills are becoming more valuable and others less so: the World Economic Forum lists a few of them, adding that “…six in 10 workers will require training before 2027, but only half of workers are seen to have access to adequate training opportunities… .”
- The WEF also mentions “technological breakthroughs, rapid urbanization, aging populations, resource scarcity, and climate change” as “trends” that likely will have profound – yet unknown – impacts on the job market.
Forewarned is forearmed.
Now that you know what we don’t know, how can you prepare?
Some strategies:
- Never take where you are now as how it’s always going to be. Keep learning new skills. Keep your resume updated (and create a modern resume using AI).
- Apply to jobs that appeal to you, even if you’re happy in your current position. Interviewing will help understand what employers want today, it will exercise your “interview muscles,” and you may find a job you will like better, pays more and which can help you gain new, valuable skills.
- Start thinking today about what type of field/business sector you’d like to move into should your sector/job/interests become “less than” secure. What do you need to do to become employable within them? Who could you talk to in the coming weeks and months to learn more about these sectors?
- Work to strengthen your “soft skills.” Being able to communicate clearly with anyone at any level of an organization, having the abilities to think on your feet, “read a room,” patience/the wherewithal to keep at a task for “the long haul,” etc., all will be even more important as the country – if not the world – changes in ways we simply can’t predict.
Finally, we believe the world now is in a state of rapid flux. Things are – and will continue – changing extremely quickly. So quickly and there’s a good chance many of us will find ourselves suddenly without work.
Therefore, if at all possible – and you’ll thank us for this tip later – try extremely hard to put money aside now. As in about three to six months’ worth of income. Having this short-term nest egg can go a long way to helping you and your family weather any “flux” that happens to you in the future.
Finally, taking us up on the “apply to jobs that appeal to you” advice we mention, above:
Take a look at Debbie’s Staffing’s current job opportunities and apply to those that appeal to you.
Even if you don’t see any current positions that interest you, consider sending us your resume: we often receive jobs that are filled by those in our database before we ever post the position on our job board.