This should get you thinking..!

Finally some good news! The sun is shining (admittedly for a brief spell) and unemployment is down. Official figures have shown that in the 3 months leading to April unemployment has fallen by 51,000 to 2.61 million.

These figures only relate to unemployment, rather than general movement in the job market. By this we mean those who are already employed and change jobs. So today I wanted to talk about the impact the lack of movement in the job market has on jobseekers and employers.

As specialist recruiters to Public Practice we are inundated with applications to our roles – most of which are unfortunately from candidates who do not have the relevant skills and/or qualifications. Of these applications probably as little as 5% will be from relevant candidates and even less from those who are currently in a role and looking to change jobs. When we take in a job from a client we are given a brief – what the candidates will be doing on a day to day basis and what experience and qualifications they need to in order to do this. We then set out to find options for them that meet these criteria. Sounds easy? Well it’s not I can assure you. We literally punch the air when we have an application from a candidate who has a stable career history and is currently working, as well as ticking all the boxes the client has specified. Why? Because we know the client is going to go for someone already in a job and because they are so few and far between.

So why are less people changing jobs? Simple, people are scared that if they leave their comfortable job where they have been for years they are putting themselves at risk: What happens if they don’t like it? What happens if the recession hits and they are ‘last in first out’? These are all factors that will prey on insecurities and the upshot is people stay where they are – even if it isn’t the best thing for their career.

This lack of movement has an impact on the economy. If less people move around or go for more senior roles, less roles are generated either as a sideways move or at the bottom-end and therefore less people are able to get a ‘foot in the door’.  

This begs the question, why are employers much more likely to take someone on who is already working? Why are you in a better place to look for a new opportunity if you are employed rather than unemployed? This has serious consequences and is of detriment to both candidate and employer alike. I have found over the years that there are many ‘good’ candidates who have the right skills and experience for a role but are over-looked as they haven’t been able to find work for a year or more. Is it their fault we have been in the worst recession since the 20’s? Here’s an idea – employers are to start adhering to at least interviewing 2 unemployed candidates per vacancy…Maybe this could be a way to start combating unemployment? A discussion for another day I think!

So what are your thoughts on this? Are you looking for a new role and struggling? Are you an employer and find yourself swaying towards people who are already working and ruling out those who have been unemployed? Or do you disagree with me and have an open mind as long as they are the right person for the job?