One of the better surveys about hiring comes from Employ Inc., the parent company of Jobvite, JazzHR, and NXTThing RPO. It provides excellent information for recruiters, career coaches, and job seekers. The 2022 Job Seeker Nation Report came out a few months ago. I thought it would be helpful to review some of the findings.

First, it is good to know about the methodology. You want to know the survey is robust and has a variety of people providing feedback. Zogby Analytics, Jobvite’s research partner, surveyed 1,514 respondents that consisted of 60% full-time employees, 59% with college degrees, 39% with children under 18 living with them, and 40% were considered frontline or essential workers.

So What Were Important Takeaways?

1) What frustrates job seekers? 

The top complaint of job seekers was that jobs were too low paying (46%). Other frustrations included:

• 42%-Not getting interviews after applying for jobs

• 35%-Non responsive employers and hiring managers

• 31%-Difficulty finding the right jobs to apply for

• 28%-The stress of the job-seeking process affecting mental health

• 28%-Being judged by algorithms rather than a recruiter or hiring manager

• 27%-Deceiving job descriptions

• 26%-Not enough jobs in the preferred professions

• 20%-Writing and updating job materials

💡 To help alleviate not getting interviews after applying for jobs, ensure you meet a good 60-70% of the job requirements and show how you meet them on your resume.

2) Taking on extra work but not being compensated

56% of workers who experienced high employee turnover in their organization did not receive increased payment or salary to compensate for the workload increase.

💡 When you are either temporarily or permanently taking on additional work, it is an excellent time to ask for additional compensation. Make the business case of how the company benefits by you completing these additional duties and remind them of the cost if they were not completed. If that does not sway an employer, you may want to find an employer that values you more.

3) Workers see switching industries as a way to make more money

23% of respondents changed industries during the pandemic. 40% of those respondents switched industries to receive higher pay. Other reasons for switching industries were:

31%-Better work/life balance

21%-Better benefits

20%-Toxic work environment or culture

20%-Ability to work remotely

💡With more opportunities available, workers are choosing to make industry switches to ones that provide more opportunity and are more compatible with their personal goals. This is especially pronounced in the hospitality industry, where low pay and working nights and weekends are the norms.

4) What influenced workers to accept a job offer

Compensation was the #1 reason workers accepted a job (53%). That was up from 38% in 2021. Other top reasons to accept a job offer included:

30%-Work/life balance and flex-time, vacation time, or proportion of work-to-time-off

29%-Company location(s) and facilities, including accessibility and convenience

23%-Company culture and values

23%-Benefits, including healthcare

22%-Quality of the work

22%-Job security

💡With inflation at the highest levels in decades, I believe compensation will continue to be the most significant factor when deciding to take a job offer. But always take a long-term perspective on your career. It may make sense to accept an offer with a lower compensation if the long-term benefit to you, your family, and your career is better.

5) What methods do job seekers prefer when interacting with an organization?

76% prefer email. Close behind were phone calls at 70%. Text messages were okay with 50%, and 22% felt okay about receiving messages through social media.

💡 Candidates should make sure they offer multiple ways to be contacted. When deciding on an email for your job search, think if your email address screams the 1990s (Hotmail, AOL, Yahoo). You don’t have to ditch your personal email address but get a new one, like Gmail, for your job search. Also, make sure you are checking your phone messages and your voice mail announcement is professional. Another thing that recruiters hate is when your voicemail is full. Clear it out!

6) How are job seekers finding out about jobs?

The most popular method is through job boards, at 59%. Other successful ways are:

46%-Friends

39%-Social media

33%-Employer career sites

25%-Professional connections

23%-Career fairs

💡Networking was two of the popular ways to find job opportunities. Many people don’t talk to their current network about what they are looking for in their next opportunity. This is a mistake. Some jobs don’t make it to the job boards, and even if you’re interested in a posted position, wouldn’t it be better if you had someone within the company who knows the hiring manager to advocate for you?

7) Is ghosting a recruiter, hiring manager, or organization okay?

19% of the respondents have admitted to doing this.

💡As a former recruiter, I can tell you it is a bad idea to do this. Hiring teams remember, and they document this. You never know when you might want to reapply for the same or another position, only to find they refuse to interview you because of your previous actions. Also, recruiters and hiring managers move around, and some industries are smaller than you think. I’ve seen hiring managers who refuse to interview individuals that ghosted them when they were at a previous employer. You never know the future, so do the right thing and contact the employer if you want to cancel an appointment. It is the right thing to do.

8) Should job seekers be negotiating salaries?

A whopping 71% are comfortable doing so. This is up 19% since 2018. 29% said they were very comfortable.

💡If you are ill at ease about salary negotiations, know that many employers expect this and often have built in extra money available to you if you ask. Also, remember that an offer negotiation does not have to only be about money. If other things are important to you, such as working from home, dues for professional organizations, or additional time off, ask for it.

9) How do people feel about remote work?

30% of respondents feel their ideal situation would be remote work. Other desired options were:

26%-In office/location work

21%-50% in-office and 50% remote

14%-Flexible/up to the discretion of the employer

10%-Remote one or two days a week

💡When it comes to how people want to work, one size does not fit all. While there are more opportunities for working remotely than ever before, there has been a push by some employers to bring their workers back on location, at least part of the time. The important thing is to understand if work flexibility is a need for you or want is to find those organizations that offer it long-term. Many workers have gotten burned by taking a position advertised as remote, only to find out that the employer now wants employees to come in either full or part-time.

10) Here is what workers expect in terms of benefits and perks from their employers

The top benefit workers expect an organization to provide is healthcare, at 66%. Other benefits that workers want include:

49%-401 (k) programs

40%-401 (k) match

40%-Bonus or stipend

39%-Paid family leave

38%-Causal dress code

32% Remote work

30% Mental health resources

💡Everyone has different needs. Before starting a job search, ensure you know your deal-breakers and your nice-to-haves. That way, you can be more efficient in your job search by not pursuing opportunities where the organization does not offer what you need or value.

Conclusion

The expectations and realities of working in the US are often in conflict. Worker voices are now being heard about what they expect and how they want to be treated. This survey gives a snapshot of the state of work and job seeking in 2022. Use this information to make better decisions.

You can download the full 2022 Job Seeker Nation Report here.

Shelley Piedmont is a job search coach. She wants to help job seekers put their best foot forward by providing the tools for a successful job search. If you need career coaching, resume preparation, interview skills assessment, or LinkedIn profile assistance, she can help. Schedule a 15-minute no-obligation consultation.