Staffing Industry Decreases Unemployment Stats
The U.S. workforce is regaining its footing as unemployment rates continue to drop. While job creation fell short of projections, a sizable 113,000 jobs were created in January helping to decrease the national unemployment rate 0.1%. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) labor force participation increase slightly as well, especially in the construction, business services and hospitality fields. Retail however has reportedly taken a severe hit. Estimated cuts of over 45,000 positions in January 2014 put retail cuts 71% higher than January 2012.
Employment trends indicate an upswing in the national economy for many industries, but with new web based employment databases like Craigslist and CareerBuilder some fear recruiting could soon be an industry of the past. Popularity and increasing prevalence of digital job boards can be credited to their accessibility as a multidimensional hiring tool. Essentially cutting out the middle man, job seekers are empowered to take control over their employment. These sites allow users greater access to larger varieties of job listings, while businesses looking to hire cast listings our like fishing lines and wait for a bite. Especially in a competitive job market.
Good news. Employment agencies are putting up a fight and proving that they remain valuable corporate resources. The American Staffing Association (ASA) reports that U.S. staffing agencies employed 3.0 million temporary and contract workers an average per week in 2013. This resulted in a 4% increase from 2012. According to the ASA firms hired 11 million workers over the last year. BLS data suggests staffing employment increased by 35,000 in February of this year.
While the agencies may be struggling, agents are still in demand. Head-hunting and employment consulting are growing fields. Many professionals with human resource and hiring experience are able to offer consulting services and third party expertise for busy companies on a smaller, less expensive scale.
At World Wide Specialty Programs we offer a wide variety of coverage for your staffing industry clients. Our Personnel Consultants Liability coverage is specifically designed to cover entities engaged in direct hire and personnel consulting activities, including human resources consulting, career counseling, and resume writing services. In addition to our General Liability coverage, we also offer your client and array services adaptable to your client’s needs. For more information, please call (877) 256-0468 or email us today.