Many businesses welcomed 2023 while emerging from — or still grappling with — supply chain issues, inflation at a 40-year high, and more employees quitting than usual with insufficient applicants to replace them.
Unfortunately, 2023 offers no reprieve, only more uncertainty. Given this set of circumstances, employers’ resolution for the New Year should be to control the space they can readily maintain — their workplace. For the first time, employers should consider focusing on making the workplace, and their employees, the prime focus. It could pay multiple dividends. Employers in numerous industries continue to face persistent hiring difficulties, with “Help Wanted” signs ubiquitous across the country. Grappling with limited applicants, employers face a serious quandary. The result is one of the most confounding labor markets we have ever seen. The federal government’s monthly employment numbers report hiring is strong, yet millions of jobs remain unfilled. Estimates are that 1.7 job vacancies exist for every person available to fill them, leading to the lowest unemployment rate in decades.