Jobs Market Parties Like It’s 1969

Blowout employment report doesn’t jibe with recent tech layoffs, but overall labor picture is a lot more buoyant By Justin Lahart As interest rates rise and companies tighten their belts, white-collar workers have taken the brunt of layoffs and job cuts, breaking with the usual pattern leading into a downturn. WSJ explains why many professionalsRead More

Bosses Are Back in Charge

America’s bosses are starting to feel bossy again. Many executives say that they are no longer scrambling to retain workers, after several years of doing whatever it took to keep people on staff. Pay increases are slowing. For some jobs, hiring is getting easier. Executives are seizing on this moment to streamline operations or cutRead More

The Job Market for Remote Workers Is Shrinking

Remote job opportunities are dwindling as fewer employers feel the need to lure talent with the promise of working from home By Ray A. Smith Jan. 24, 2023 2:52 pm ET Many prospective workers who were determined to get a remote job just a few months ago are hitting a wall as remote listings rapidlyRead More

FTC Plan to Ban Noncompete Clauses Shifts Companies’ Focus

Ban could prompt employers to use alternative mechanisms such as nondisclosure agreements   By Lauren Weber Jan. 17, 2023 Businesses and lawyers are beginning to assess what the Federal Trade Commission’s proposed ban of noncompete clauses in employment contracts could mean for worker mobility, wages and the way future compensation agreements are structured. While a fullRead More

Hiring, Wage Gains Eased in December, Pointing to a Cooling Labor Market in 2023

The unemployment rate edged down to match a half-century low of 3.5% Employers in many sectors were still struggling late in the year to fill open positions, pushing up wages. By David Harrison   The U.S. labor market is losing momentum as hiring and wage growth cooled in December, showing the effects of slower economic growth and theRead More

A Talent Shortage Is the Perfect Time to Invest in Your Existing Team

Jan. 4, 2023 With competition for talent fierce in the New England biotech industry, medical device manufacturer KMC Systems tried a different approach. Scott Leon The med tech and biotech industries are booming in New England. In Massachusetts alone, the biopharma sector grew 13.2% last year, and the state is the largest recipient of NIHRead More

Companies Are Gritting Their Teeth and Hiring

Labor market remains surprisingly robust despite concerns about the economy Even as manufacturers became gloomier, according to a report released Wednesday, they stepped up hiring By Justin Lahart – Wall Street Journal A lot of businesses are feeling morose about where the economy is heading. And yet they still are looking to hire more workers.Read More

Stay for Pay? Companies Offer Big Raises to Retain Workers

Recent record-high wage gains for workers who remain in their jobs are a factor contributing to inflation Employers are giving existing employees more merit and other pay increases to defend against poaching by rivals and avoid the drain of training new workers.PHOTO: RACHEL WOOLF FOR THE WALL STREET JOURNAL By Gabriel T. Rubin Follow andRead More

Wage Growth Bounces Back

Wall Street Journal Wages are probably the best indicator of underlying inflation and they’re going up. Average hourly earnings jumped 0.6% in November from October and 5.1% from a year earlier, up from 4.9%. While that’s in line with the range for 2022, there’s been a recent acceleration: Wages surged at 5.8% annual rate inRead More

Let’s View Our Employees Like We Do Our Customers

Nov. 17, 2022 Workforce strategies must change for companies to attract the talent necessary to ensure success. Adrienne Selko Successful companies possess intricate customer profiles which enable them to deliver exactly what customers want. Great care, time and research go into developing these profiles. What if employers put that same time and energy into understandingRead More