This strong reading – which added to the Federal Reserve’s determination to start raising interest rates this month – has also given workers new leverage as they seek more favorable working conditions and higher wages. The story goes on under the ad “The labor market is still rarely in line with strong employer demand and increased employee mobility,” said Daniel Zhao, a senior economist at Glassdoor. “We are still seeing very strong job openings and departures, as well as redundancies at record lows.” Americans who changed jobs saw a typical 6.6 percent increase last year, while those who remained saw their pay rise by 5.4 percent, according to a widely monitored measure of wage growth by the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta. Both figures, referred to as three-month averages, are at or near the highest rates recorded since the late 1990s. But inflation has eroded many of these wage gains and contributed to growing concerns about the economy. A growing portion of Americans – 21 percent – cited rising prices as the country’s main problem, up from 10 percent in February, according to a new Gallup poll. The story goes on under the ad The poll also shows that cost concerns outweigh the positive news about unemployment. A majority of 75% say the economy is deteriorating, from 70% in February. “Unemployment” ranks at the bottom of a list of national concerns with 32 per cent saying they are “very” worried about it, but 59 per cent are very concerned about inflation and 58 per cent are worried about the economy as a whole. These concerns are likely to contribute to increased employment among Americans seeking to benefit from the tight labor market. Jeff Gabbard quit his job at IT in Indianapolis in February, thinking it would take about three months to find a new job. It took less than two weeks. The story goes on under the ad His job search was far from over in the pandemic, when Gabard was unemployed for more than a year. This time, he says, there were many more openings that offered benefits such as the choice of work from home. “Being able to work remotely really opened things up for me because all of a sudden I was not limited to Indianapolis,” said Gambard, 57. “I could get a job anywhere.” Interest in remote locations is steadily rising among job seekers as they look for ways to improve their working conditions, according to Glassdoor’s Zhao. “We are beginning to see more companies offering remote and hybrid options, as they recognize that they need to be more flexible to really compete for talent,” he said. “Employees are using this to take advantage of the new leverage to negotiate terms that are beneficial to them.” The story goes on under the ad Joshua Waight quit his job at a 99-cent store in Sonora, California in February to stay home with his 8-month-old son. He had spent the last year making a minimum wage in the sock shift early in the morning, but was disappointed by the lack of available hours. With his wife starting a new job at a nearby casino, it seemed like a good time to leave the workforce. “I felt like my career was going nowhere and I wanted to be home for my son,” said the 34-year-old. “Working through the pandemic was difficult.” Scott Clement contributed to this report.
