As you search for salespeople, installers, and other employees, here’s what the experts are saying about the labor shortage throughout the US.
The extra $300/week unemployment payments from the Biden administration officially end September 6. About half the states in the US cut those benefits off as early as two months ago (see below). But many experts are predicting an uptick in job applicants next months as the rest of the country comes off the extra payments.
Also, by next month, many children will return to in-person learning at school, which frees up parents to work again.
But while you may find it easier to attract employees next month, you may need to pay them more than in the past.
The average salary required to entice someone to change jobs is now about $71K, according to Barron’s, citing the Survey of Consumer Expectations. That’s more than 15 percent higher from a year ago.
And finding employees may still be a challenge. The latest employment report shows there are now more jobs vacant than there are people on unemployment–approximately 10 million job vacancies and about 9.5 million people on unemployment.
There is also a question of the new COVID Delta variant and its impact on the economy and therefore, the labor market. So far, however, according to Barron’s, consumer confidence and foot traffic at retailers remains strong.
We should note that while finding installers has been a problem for years, lately some suppliers report difficulty finding employees to work in their warehouses.
States that ended the extra $300/week unemployment benefits early are listed below along with the date the extra benefits were cancelled (according to USA Today).
By some measures, said Barron’s, those states have not yet seen a big increase in employment.
- Alaska June 12
- Missouri June 12
- Mississippi June 12
- Iowa June 12
- Alabama June 19
- Idaho June 19
- *Indiana June 19
- Nebraska June 19
- New Hampshire June 19
- North Dakota June 19
- West Virginia June 19
- Wyoming June 19
- Arkansas June 26
- Florida June 26
- Georgia June 26
- Montana June 26
- Ohio June 26
- Oklahoma June 26
- South Carolina June 26
- South Dakota June 26
- Texas June 26
- Utah June 26
- Maryland July 3
- Tennessee July 3
- Arizona July 10
- Louisiana August 3