It's getting harder to land a job — and other happenings in the world of work

Welcome back to The Work Shift, a weekly newsletter that keeps you informed about the economy, labor market and evolving world of work through data-driven insights. Click subscribe to be notified of future editions.

Catch up on the headlines from the last 7 days.

• Job seekers are sending more applications than they were last year, according to a new LinkedIn analysis. Read more about this below.
• New jobless claims fell to the lowest level since February. The weekly figures are a proxy for layoffs and can be volatile.
• Credit card debt tops $1 trillion. While the Federal Reserve has been boosting interest rates, lenders have been boosting consumers’ access to credit. In addition to opening a record $89 billion in new credit card accounts in the first quarter of the year, banks also increased spending limits on 18.4 million existing accounts.
• Housing market demand is falling. Applications for mortgages have reached a 27-year low, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. Prospective buyers can’t get past steep interest rates and a lack of inventory pushing prices up.?
• The workplace gender gap is closing, shaking up a decades-long trend that saw far more men than women in the workforce. The gap is now at its narrowest ever, according to recent data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. One driving force is the rise of remote and hybrid work, allowing mothers of young children to stay working.
• It’s back-to-school season — but not for teachers. New data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that school staffing hasn’t gotten back to pre-pandemic levels. Some districts are so short-staffed they’re considering dropping to a four-day school week.
• Professional football is back — and the NFL is reveling in its current renaissance. It has deals for exclusive game rights with a handful of TV networks and major streamers topping $110 billion. Meanwhile, a record 73.5 million people are expected to bet on NFL activity this season, following dozens of states legalizing sports betting.

Take a closer look at recent trending topics — and engage with meaningful conversations happening on LinkedIn.

Here’s why job seekers are sending more applications right now

• The U.S. labor market is still showing resilience — but “the degree of excess demand is diminishing,” according to Rand Ghayad, LinkedIn’s head of economics and global labor markets. Instead of resorting to layoffs, companies seem to be limiting their number of job openings.?
• This dip is happening alongside a sustained uptick in job seekers’ search activity, according to recent LinkedIn data. The number of applications sent by job seekers surged by 18% year-over-year in August, suggesting a more competitive job market where it is taking candidates more time and effort to land a new role.
• Hiring across all industries continued to fall in August, dropping 3.6% from July according to LinkedIn data. That’s the third straight month where declines exceeded 3%, but a longer look back at the data suggests declines are moderating. That easing bodes well for a soft landing. Goldman Sachs now puts its projected risk of a recession in the next year at 15%, down from 20%. Separately, the Federal Reserve is expected to double down its growth projections for the economy for the year when it meets later this month.

Here’s what it takes to reach the C-suite these days

• The most successful CEOs tend to have personalities that match their companies’ cultures and missions, according to recent research from MIT and Stanford. A more open-minded executive CEO tends to lead a more innovative company, for example. “No two CEOs are cut from the same cloth and that’s a good thing,” a staffing executive, Shaun Coe, shared. “It’s all about syncing up your own vibe with your company’s culture.”?
• But beyond the right fit, research shows that there isn’t exactly one personality type that is best suited for executive success. There are, however, certain traits and skills that some business leaders believe help them be the best they can be on the job. That includes empathy, humility, active listening, compassion, adaptability and more.
• Robert Furniss Roe, a consumer goods executive, commented that there are “3 Cs” for CEOs: “Clarity of direction and purpose, connection with your team and consumer, and compassion using a well developed emotional intelligence.” Frank Marstellar, a senior executive recruiter, echoed that state. He commented that he looks for “vision, ability to execute on that vision and the ability to satisfy all stakeholders,” when hiring.

Here’s who is taking advantage of hybrid work

• Millennials are more likely than their older counterparts to be splitting their workweek between the office and their homes, according to LinkedIn’s latest Workforce Confidence Index. In fact, 20% of millennials (age 27 to 42) were in hybrid roles in August — a steady pattern for more than a year.
• By contrast, 17% of Gen X (ages 43 to 58) worked hybrid last month, while 15% of baby boomers (ages 59 to 77) did so. Data for Gen Z (those below age 26) isn’t extensive enough to be analyzed on its own.
• One main reason for millennials to be the most excited about flexible working arrangements? They’re the most likely to be the parents of young children. There are more mothers in the workplace than ever before — and getting to enjoy a few days without a commute could mean a better shot at fitting in school drop-offs and pickups. Julie Prince Bell, a working Gen X mother, commented that the pandemic also altered what families were accustomed to. For her, that means maximizing time with her daughter during the day and prioritizing work early in the morning or late at night when she is asleep.

Get ready for the week by seeing what’s coming up.

Monday, September 11:

• The U.S. marks the 22nd anniversary of the 9/11 attacks.

Wednesday, September 13:

• The Bureau of Labor Statistics will release the monthly Consumer Price Index for August, which measures inflation through the price of goods and services.
• LinkedIn Senior Editor at Large George Anders will release his latest edition of Workforce Insights.

Thursday, September 14:

• The Bureau of Labor Statistics will release the Producer Price Index for July. The gauge measures the change over time in prices charged by domestic producers for their output.?
• The U.S. Commerce Department will release its retail sales report for August, which tracks demand for finished goods, such as food, clothing and furniture, in stores and online.
• The U.S. Department of Labor will release initial jobless claims for the previous week. The report, a proxy for layoffs, tracks the number of people filing for unemployment benefits.

Friday, September 15:

• The University of Michigan will release its preliminary reading of September’s Consumer Sentiment Index, which measures how Americans feel about current and future economic conditions.