Tight Labor Market – Dispatches From The Front

The number one issue facing small businesses today is no longer inflation, but rather finding and retaining competent, reliable employees. Workers today, especially millennials, are demanding more than a paycheck to take a job, and remote work has allowed many to take jobs all over the country without leaving their couch.

So, with unemployment at 50-year lows, what are some strategies to find the workers your business needs?

To start, the obvious solution should be offering higher wages. While this practice may work, it is unsustainable for many small businesses that run on tight budgets. Mike Zaffaroni, CEO of Liberty Landscape Supply in Jacksonville, Florida, explains how one of his toughest years garnered a 10% increase in revenue, but a 40% increase in payroll expenses. “It is impossible to run a successful business and grow with that equation,” Zaffaroni says.

Disabled persons are entering the workforce as overall unemployment rates drop and companies consider an expanded pool of potential job applicants for entry-level and essential positions.

Persons with disabilities have long been sidelined and unable to find employment, due in part to stigma and from an inability to perform tasks as quickly or accurately as their able-bodied peers. That trend has steadily changed since 2011, marking a significant change in the makeup of the American labor force.

A tight economy with an extremely low unemployment rate is benefiting all workers, but especially workers with disabilities, The Wall Street Journal reported Saturday. The unemployment rate in the U.S. is currently 3.9 percent, the lowest reported rate since 1969, according to WSJ. Those unemployment numbers have allowed a large swath of disabled persons to seek and find work.

Tag: Tight Labor Market

Hiring in a Tight Labor Market: 3 Creative Ways | AllBusiness.com

The Tight Labor Market is Benefit People with Disabilities | Small Business Trends