We recently surveyed our Strategic Suppliers* to see what’s trending in the contingent workforce labor market and received some valuable insight.
Overall, our suppliers have experienced a decrease in requisition volume from the clients they support; however, not all industries are slowing. The technology, financial services and retail sectors have taken a significant hit, but other industries including healthcare/life sciences, government, oil and gas, and utilities have maintained and/or increased requisition volumes.
When asked if any of the firms are considering layoffs of their essential staff (e.g., recruiters, administrative support staff, etc.) in response to current economic uncertainties, the majority response was, “no.” Our Strategic Suppliers are proceeding with caution but are holding on to critical workers. If cuts are being made, the option has been to decrease nonessential work travel and other discretionary spending.
Given that the Labor Force Participation Rate remains at a historic low, we were also curious to learn what the most common challenges are when attracting top talent. Pay rate was the most reported challenge followed by flexible work benefits (e.g., work from home, flex hours) and type of assignment (e.g., opportunity to go full-time, length of assignment).
