Vacancies galore but where are the candidates?

When the pandemic first took hold some 18 months ago, we rightly envisaged huge economic turmoil that would lead to job losses in different sectors such as aviation and hospitality. What we did not predict however was that the easing of the pandemic would conversely lead to record numbers of job vacancies in most areas. For those looking for a new opportunity or career development, there has rarely been a better time to go for it.

Unfortunately, the brightening job prospects have not been matched by a corresponding desire of people “to go for it”. There is certainly evidence to suggest that the number of new business start ups has remained very high but this innovative flare is not replicated across the general employment market where caution and conservatism are the dominant themes. One possible explanation for this lies in the fact that the pandemic related lockdowns created a huge surge of interest in people looking to move house. In fact, June 2021 was the business month for house sales since records began (Guardian 21 July 2021).?As any of who have applied for mortgages know a degree of employment stability/consistent salary payments are all factors that are looked at in assessing your suitability for a mortgage. As employers have generally also been flexible about where you can work, the incentive to change residential location and improve your overall environment looks to have topped the desire to change jobs.

As recruiters, we are now in the joyous position of not having to forage for vacancies from clients. Quite the reverse. Clients are now only too happy to share their vacancies with us and even those clients who had tried to do their own recruitment in the past, are increasingly coming to us for assistance to plug the gaps they cannot plug.

Over the last few months, conversations with potential candidates for roles have turned into life coaching sessions where individuals share their innermost thoughts on the roles they would like to do but then decide to stay put after all. This inertia is in itself leading employers to take ever more desperate measures to bring on board new talent. For recruiters, it is simply another sign that our business is wholly dependent on supply meeting demand.

Whilst we may be coming out of the pandemic now, there is also a recognition that we still are facing an unparalleled level of disruption in our society linked to Covid which has affected everything from supply chains to manufacturing capacity and power generation. Nevertheless, you do not need a crystal ball to recognise that the times when countries are awash with job/career opportunities are typically short lived. Lurking round the corner are as always dark recessionary forces which very often go by the name of “inflation”.

In a sense, we are at risk of pontificating for too long on the favorable job climate that currently exists which can help us fuel our respective career objectives. At times like these, I recall the old saying “In the end we only regret the chances we didn’t take”.?Employment markets are very fickle so we really must make the most of the jobs “gold rush” while we can.