CTM #002 - Dec 2022 Jobs Report, Remote Jobs, Applying Early to Boost Opportunity
Jan 03, 2023
December 2022 Jobs Report (2 Min Read)
The BLS released the jobs report for December 2022. The consensus estimate is for an increase of 217,500 nonfarm payrolls, following a gain of 263,000 in November. The unemployment rate is seen remaining unchanged at a historically low 3.7%. So the main takeaway here is more of the same.
The number of persons not in the labor force who currently want a job was little changed at 5.6 million in November and remains above its February 2020 level of 5.0 million. Among those not in the labor force who wanted a job, the number of persons marginally attached to the labor force held at 1.5 million in November. These individuals wanted and were available for work and had looked for a job sometime in the prior 12 months but had not looked for work in the 4 weeks preceding the survey. The number of discouraged workers, a subset of the marginally attached who believed that no jobs were available for them, was 405,000 in November, little changed from the previous month.
According to BLS Establishment Survey data, industries still making gains (in terms of adding jobs) are leisure and hospitality, manufacturing, construction, financial activities, health care, and government positions. Employment declined in retail trade, transportation, and warehousing.
From my own personal perspective, I'm still seeing lots of companies (even in the tech space) post jobs despite freezes or slowdowns. For example, Spotify is still posting jobs related to new features being developed (for example, podcast tools) while going through a round of internal downsizing. Other large companies consistently posting new growth roles have been Nike, Google (select director roles), Adobe, Microsoft, and Apple...amongst others.
Finding Remote Opportunities (2 Min Read)
Even as the market slowed towards the end of 2022, the demand for "remote" or "virtual work" continued to climb. Upwork estimates that 22% of the workforce (36.2 Million Americans) will work remotely by 2025. Globally, 16% of companies are fully remote according to an Owl labs study. This same study found that about 62% of workers aged 22 to 65 claim to work remotely at least occasionally. With those numbers in mind, it's not a bad idea to keep an eye out for the ideal remote job. Here are the top remote work sites (and job boards) we use at BC to keep tabs on the markets:
1. FlexJobs - https://www.flexjobs.com/
2. We Work Remotely - https://weworkremotely.com/
3. Working Nomads - https://www.workingnomads.com/jobs
4. Remote.co - https://remote.co/
5. AngelList - https://angel.co/remote
6. Nodesk - https://nodesk.co/remote-jobs/
7. Remotive - https://remotive.com/
8. JustRemote - https://justremote.co/
Best of luck with your search!
Applying Quickly (2 Min Read)
With fewer companies hiring, and more people job searching it's important to recognize that the average number of applicants will likely increase for a given role. The final applicant number will depend on the company and the specific position, but rest assured, simply applying to the role doesn't necessarily mean you're application will be considered, and even if it is seen, there may already be qualified candidates/applicants in the pipeline. My point in sharing this is to let my audience know the importance of early applying. In most cases, HM's and Recruiters will wait 1 - 2 weeks (7 to 14 days) to collect applications from the initial wave of potential candidates but Recruiters don't have to wait that long to put a qualified candidate in front of an HM. The sooner you get your application into the req, the more likely you are to be noticed early, and beat out other qualified candidates that come in later than you. Sometimes people get jobs simply because they're ahead in the hiring process (this is a gross over-simplification of the process, but my point is still true).
So what can you do to make sure you apply early? Here are two quick tips/tools:
1. Turn "On" notifications on job board sites like LinkedIn and Glassdoor. These sites have automations you can add when a posting (that meets your pre-set criteria) shows up in their list. It's an easy way to make sure you apply early to the jobs in your target.
2. Use "automation creation" tools like IFTTT (https://ifttt.com/) to link job posting sites with your email, phone, or another platform. Essentially you can tell IFTTT to send you a text message once a site posts a job that meets certain criteria.
In any case, make sure you are applying early when/if you are ready to submit your information for consideration. It's an easy way to boost your chances of being seen by the right people.
