11 March 2023 — Latest data from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, showed 311,000 jobs were added to the US economy in February with gains in leisure and hospitality, retail and health care. AMS, the global talent solutions business has warned businesses to be prepared to think flexibly about moving skills around their organizations as the competition for talent remains fierce.
Nicola Hancock, AMS Regional Managing Director, Americas said: “The U.S. labor market is the strongest it’s been in more than 50 years. There are less layoffs now than at any time in the 20 years before the pandemic. That said, some companies are still letting go of a small percentage of their workforce, mostly due to right sizing after an unprecedented hiring surge in 2021 and early 2022. On the other side of that, industries such as travel, and hospitality are still trying to hire back the talent they lost.
“In order to weather the uncertainty of the 2023 market, companies will need to scale up or down as needed. That means being flexible in moving talent around their organization, being willing to upskill or reskill workers, and being more flexible with all labor categories including gig workers and contractors.
“While we expect hiring to continue, we also expect companies to be more strategic in how they utilize their existing teams. We saw that intentionality pick up at the end of last year, as companies continued to be creative about how they engaged with talent to attract, hire, and retain them.”
