Job seekers would most like the ability to work remotely full time.
Employers say attracting new workers remains their top challenge.
As employers and job hunters try to connect with each other, a recent survey by the state Labor Department reveals what’s top of mind for each group – and factors that get in the way of hiring.
“Now, more than ever, it is imperative that we use what we’ve learned from this collaborative survey to understand the changes that have occurred in the labor market and develop effective strategies to match people to careers,” said Roberta Reardon, the state labor commissioner.
The survey was conducted in partnership with Empire State Development and the Business Council of New York State.
With the Buffalo Niagara region’s unemployment rate at 3.8%, it’s still a “job seeker’s job market,” as Stephen Tucker, president and CEO of the Northland Workforce Training Center, recently said.
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In the Labor Department survey, job seekers were asked what options or incentives they would like employers to offer. The respondents could cite more than one answer.
The ability to work remotely full time was the most oft-cited answer (36%). While some amount of remote work seems here to stay, many employers have started calling employees back to the office on a more regular basis.
More paid time off (35%) was the next most frequently cited answer, followed by higher pay/higher starting pay (33%).
The top two responses indicate how quality of life issues – such as not having to come into an office, and getting paid time away from the job – have become increasingly important to job seekers. There was a time – pre-pandemic – when the higher pay/higher starting pay likely would have led the list.
On the flip side, what are employers’ top challenges?
No surprise, attracting new workers was No. 1. More than three-quarters of the businesses responding cited that issue.
Heather Mulligan, the Business Council’s president and CEO, said it was “critical that we help our state’s private sector employers find the talent they need to grow our state’s economy.
“Workforce development programs and initiatives remain crucial in achieving this goal and the Business Council remains committed to fostering those programs,” she said.
The next two challenges cited most frequently by businesses: inflation (54%) and retaining current workers (49%).
Supply chain issues – a front-burner worry coming out of the pandemic – have greatly eased. They ranked only No. 6 on the list, cited by 29% of businesses.
How are businesses going about finding employees? They ranked their most successful recruiting tools.
Word of mouth, networking through current employees and referrals – all grouped as a single response – came out on top. That was followed by the job site Indeed, and then the company’s own website.
What non-technical skills do employers find most lacking among applicants and new hires? The top replies were self-motivation (61%), communication skills (56%) and problem solving/critical thinking (52%). On the technical skills side, employers most frequently said applicants and new hires lacked basic computer use/computer literacy.
The survey provided some data specific to Western New York.
Job seekers were asked about their most common barriers to employment. For Western New York, 51% said age discrimination was a mild or severe barrier. The next most-cited barrier they cited was lacking a large professional network.
As for barriers to additional education, 53% of respondents cited cost.
Western New York businesses were asked about the most common barriers preventing them from hiring a candidate or preventing a candidate from taking a job.
The leading answer was lack of experience (56%), followed by self-motivation/initiative (46%) and a gap in salary and wage expectations (41%).
Local businesses were also asked what type of services they desired to offer but were unable to. Child care was the top answer, cited by 38% of respondents.
A total of 8,200 job seekers participated in the survey; people seeking jobs in Western New York accounted for about 5.5% of the respondents. Among the 2,400 businesses in the survey, 26% of the respondents were based in Western New York.
Hochul weighs in on remote work
With many companies adjusting their policies to bring workers back to the office more frequently, Gov. Kathy Hochul weighed in.
Hochul latched on to the topic when she spoke at the Conference on Capital Markets in Real Estate, in New York City.
“Many more people working in person, which is what we want them to do – we went from zero to two days to three days, pushing for four to five,” Hochul said, according to a transcript.
“And for young people, here’s my advice: the ones who are showing up in the office will be the bosses someday,” Hochul said.
“So show up,” she said. “Show up. There are people who want to mentor you, to take you by the hand, to show you the way. And they’re not going to do it Zooming into life, just an observation.”
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The Buffalo Next team gives you the big picture on the region’s economic revitalization. Email tips to buffalonext@buffnews.com or reach Buffalo Next Editor David Robinson at 716-849-4435.
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