Last Friday, the Bureau of Labor Statistics released the Employment Situation for September 2023. In this report, it showed that 336,000 new jobs were created.
The unemployment rate remained steady at 3.8%, unchanged from last month. This metric is used to measure the number of workers who currently do not have a job but are looking for work. Last month, we saw this measure jump up 0.3% to its current level due to an influx of 700,000 workers in the job market.
In September, leisure and hospitality led job creation with 96,000 jobs, with 16,000 of those in the accommodation sector alone. Accommodation employment is still down 10.3%, or 217,000 positions from pre-pandemic levels. The second leading sector for job creation was the government, with 73,000 jobs created. Next was healthcare with 41,000 jobs created last month, 8,000 of which were in nursing facilities specifically.
Employment situation highlights:
- September was the first time in three months that job creation was above 200,000
- All sectors gained jobs last month
- September was the 33rd month in a row with job growth
- Economists only predicted 170,000 jobs to be added in September
- July and August reports were revised to include 119,000 more jobs collectively
Long story short, the economy is defying expectations month after month — and the competition to hire top talent is only growing. A few months ago, it looked like hiring might get easier, but with this recent data it’s apparent that the industries that need to hire the most will still face quite a bit of contention when recruiting.
In contrast to August, September’s employment situation revealed that while there are more looking for employment in the labor force, there are also more employers looking for quality talent on the market. In order to make the hires you need at your company, you need to focus on recruiting strategies that highlight what you offer to potential candidates to stand out. Read on to learn more about how you can use recruitment marketing to your advantage and hire smarter in October.
Gain a competitive advantage on job boards
With so many employers creating new roles, it’ll be harder and harder to gain the attention of the talent you want to hire. You want — and need — to be front and center for job seekers as they start their search for the next role.
The best way to do this is by using the most popular job boards to reach candidates. In our 2023 State of Hiring Report, we found that almost half (47%) of job seekers start their search on job boards like Indeed or ZipRecruiter. Each job board has their own nuances when it comes to job posts, so be sure to learn their preferences. It’s also important to use SEO best practices when crafting your job descriptions so that search engines like Google or Bing will pick up your posts and share them with job seekers who look for roles there. You also consider sponsoring your open roles on job boards so that your open roles automatically populate first in job seekers’ results.
Leverage your social media profiles
More and more job seekers are conducting research on companies before actually taking the plunge and submitting an application. Do you know what a candidate sees when they’re looking up your organization?
In order to appeal to this modern wave of candidates, you need to have a consistent employer branding across all of your platforms. This means that you need to represent your organization the same way on your career site, your LinkedIn profile, your Facebook business page, etc. so that no matter where a candidate finds your logo, they’ll find the same information. You need to not only share your open roles on these platforms, but also demonstrate what it’s like to work for you. Showcase the perks and benefits that come with a position at your company, along with what makes you unique in order to pique an applicant’s interest.
Turn your best employees into your greatest recruiters
The best voice to champion your business (and your open roles) is that of your current staff! If you really lean in to what they, and likely job seekers, really want in an organization, the staff will do the hard work for you by bragging about how great of a place it is to work. For you, this can do wonders for your recruiting efforts; after all, you’ll catch more flies with honey than with vinegar. You can capture this interest of people who may or may not be actively looking for a job by establishing an employee referral program.
In order to optimize this recruitment method, you need to make submitting a referral as easy as it is to order take away or summon a ride. With modern employee referral programs, you can do all of this on your phone. Even better, with automation tools, you can schedule campaigns to regularly share your referral program with new hires and existing employees.
Tune in to what employees are saying
The best recruitment marketing tool you have is already within your reach: your current employees. Tap into what really motivates your existing staff by welcoming and asking for feedback — what you find out can be used in both your retention and recruiting efforts.
Take what you learn from your workers and, if it’s reasonable, actually apply it to your organization’s people policies. Odds are that what keeps your staff are what job seekers on the market are looking for in their next role. Regularly tuning into and asking your employees what they want shows that you value them and can do wonders for your retention rate. The feedback you receive should not only shape your people policies, but can be used in testimonials to enhance your employment branding.
Takeaways
After the September jobs report, it’s clear that employers will need to step up their recruitment marketing efforts in order to attract and hire top talent. In order to stand out from the hiring crowd, you’ll need to gain a competitive edge on leading job boards, maintain a consistent employer brand across all of your social media channels, turn your best employees into your greatest recruiters, and tune into what your employees actually want.
Want to learn more about what modern workers want? Download our 2023 State of Hiring Report to learn the six defining characteristics of this labor force.
