Recruiters Brace for a Hiring Slowdown

Jonathan Kidder

5 years ago

The economic impacts of the Coronavirus pandemic are uncertain, but some experts predict that unemployment in the U.S. could reach 15% and the economy could shrink by over 30% in the next quarter, resulting in up to 47 million job losses. As seen during The Great Recession, a contracting economy and high levels of displacement make it more challenging to recruit talent that are already employed, as voluntary attrition decreases.

How could the pandemic Impact Recruiters?

1. Many companies have had to put hiring on hold, causing a decrease in job opportunities and a decrease in recruitment efforts.

2. Remote recruiting became more prevalent, which can make it more difficult to establish personal connections and evaluate candidates effectively.

3. Recruiters have had to adapt to virtual interviewing and hiring processes, which may not be as efficient as in-person interactions.

4. The economic downturn caused by the pandemic has led to increased competition for jobs, making it harder for recruiters to find suitable candidates.

5. Remote working has increased, this change has made it harder to identify the best candidates in a specific location.

6. The uncertainty of the pandemic has made it more difficult for recruiters to predict future hiring needs, making it harder to plan for staffing and recruitment.

Recruiters will need to brace themselves for a hiring slowdown across the globe.

Current Industries Affected

As shown in the Reuters graphic, March job losses disproportionately affected the Leisure and Hospitality industry (65% of all positions lost in March), followed by Health and Education services. Actual job cuts differ from planned job cuts (job cut announcements) in that when looking at announcements, the Automotive industry is second to the Leisure industry.

How will this Affect Diverse Talent?

Reuters conducted an analysis of March related job losses and found that unemployment was experienced at a higher rate by women and workers with lower education than men and workers with higher education.I created a list of Boolean strings to source diverse talent (here).

Corporate Restructuring

Throughout 2020, several companies announced large restructuring events. Of them, Hy-Vee is the only one to adjust their announcement, citing increased revenue and talent demand as a result of the Coronavirus. It is unclear as to what the true impact might be, if any, on the plans announced by other employers.

1. AT&T

The Companies President, announced that the company will cut tens of billions of dollars in costs over the next few years, including job cuts which are scheduled to primarily take place throughout 2020. This is in addition to the 7.6% headcount reduction that occurred in 2019 (including 4k jobs cut in Q4 2019).

2. Barclays

Cutting headcount throughout the United Kingdom, reducing 1,000+ jobs by the end of the year. The bulk of the reductions will be made in England while nearly 200 jobs will be cut elsewhere in the UK.

3. Cisco

In their February earnings call, stated that they started a new round of layoffs and “had begun a restructuring plan that could lead to pre-tax charges of around $300 million, including severance payments.” This is in addition to the two known layoff events that occurred in 2019 that affected 500+ jobs.

4. Hy-Vee

Announced a large restructuring effort that includes closing four fulfillment centers that supply its Aisle online delivery service. The company did not specify if there will be any staff reductions outside of the fulfillment centers. More than 1,500 fulfillment center employees are affected across four states (Iowa, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska).

5. Wal-Mart

Closed two stores in North Carolina, making a total of five stores that Wal-Mart has announced it will close within the last six months. The company also recently shut down five subsidiaries: Allswell, Bonobo, Hayneedle, Jet, and Jet Black. Wal-Mart is engaged in the “Great Workplace” initiative, which is a “sweeping overhaul” of its workforce and “terminations are a part of the plan.”

6. SoftBank

The CEO of Softbank predicts that 15 of the companies that the SoftBank Vision Fund has backed will go bankrupt. Within the last 14 months, 20 of the companies that SoftBank has funded have laid off employees: Brandless, CloudMind, Compass, Didi, Fair, Flexport, Getaround, Gympass, Kabbage, Katerra, Loggi, Ola, Opendoor, Oyo, Paytm, Rappi, SoFi, Uber, WeWork, and Zume.

Sourcing Layoff Lists

Candor, Layoff Lists, & Layoffs.FYI are external crowd-sourced lists of companies that are displacing workers. When possible, these sites share publicly available lists of employees who are displaced with their contact information. It’s a way place to source and recruit available talent online.

How to Use SnapChat, TikTok, and Twitch for Recruiting

Free Recruiting Extensions Tools to Download Now

Follow me