It has been a really hot job market as the total number of employed people is close to but still one million below pre-pandemic levels, and there are roughly two jobs open for every person looking for work. We consider the realities of the job market for both employers and employees in this environment, but also consider what the inflation rate (over 8%, while wages have increased about 5%), and a potential recession might do to change that dynamic. (NPR)

Hot Job Market

Employers expect to hire 26.6% more college graduates this year than last. And employers feel like the prospective employees have the power in the relationship. Employers are starting to accept changing workforce trends, for example, job-hopping is no longer a red flag for many employers. What are employees looking for? Flexibility, health care, professional development opportunities, and a diverse workplace. (Fortune)

Might a recession swing the negotiating power regarding work-from-home back towards employers? The Atlantic examines the possibilities. The article suggests that certain companies have actually used return to work requirements to indirectly downsize, hoping disgruntled employees will simply quit. This paragraph sums it up.

The downturn, if it comes, will be a stress test of an emerging phenomenon. Remote work thrived when the pandemic was raging, when managers were desperate to hang on to employees, and when white-collar workers knew they had power. The question is what happens when some of these tailwinds weaken. “Some employers will respond to a slowdown with a return-to-office plan,” Ozimek said. “Some might be happy for 20 percent of the workforce leaving. But others might be really protective of their top talent and willing to bend over backward to keep them.”

Highly prized remote work appears to still be the norm in the crypto and blockchain world, according to a report from MINT. “Blockchain topped LinkedIn’s most in-demand hard skills and with the pandemic demonstrating that white-collar work can be done from anywhere, there has been an allied boom in interest from companies and potential employees for remote crypto jobs.”

Hot jobs

It is difficult to discuss hot jobs and careers without referencing “lists.” Here are a just a few.

A Fox News channel in Yakima Washington first examined demographic trends in the US, and then reported a list of the fifteen fastest growing fields over the period from 2020 to 2030 based on data from U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Employment Projections.  Basically, the aging of the baby boom has led to two trends—one is that the workforce over age 55 has doubled in the last 20 years, while the other generations’ share of the workforce has been relatively flat. The aging baby boomers are also driving demand for many services and projected top jobs. Number one on this “fastest growing professions” list is home health care/personal care workers. Most of the jobs on this list are health care fields.

Zip Recruiter compiled a report on the job titles projected to have the strongest growth of those requiring a college degree or some type, based on BLS data. Here are the 10, along with their median salaries: (CNBC)

• Elementary school teacher: $61,350
• Market research analyst: $63,920
• Accountant: $77,250
• Registered nurse: $77,600
• Management analyst: $93,000
• Project management specialist: $94,500
• Operations manager: $97,970
• Medical and health services manager: $101,340
• Software developer: $110,140
• Financial manager: $131,710

What are the top five jobs in terms of hiring at the present time? Here is another list from CNBC, this time with average salaries.

• Registered nurse: $71,958
• Truck driver: $58,000
• Sales rep (manufacturing): $61,642
• Customer service rep (retail): $40,444
• Software developer (apps): $71,958

The average starting salary of this year’s college graduates is expected to be over $50,000. But graduates with certain degrees from public universities are making a median income of over $100,000 within three years of graduation. This list of institutions spans the country, but the degrees are primarily in nursing and diagnostic, intervention and treatment, or petroleum and other engineering fields, as well as marine transportation. (CNBC)

What do the largest companies pay their employees? If you are interested, this WSJ article (subscription may be required) opens the window onto what the biggest US companies pay their employees. As you can probably guess, higher tech/tech driven companies are the ones paying a lot.

Interested in moving to the UK? If you get a degree from one of the 2- top universities listed in this article, you can get a visa to live in the UK without having a job offer. (Business Insider)

Soft Skills

At the University of Dayton, students can take a class and earn a “microcredential” in resilience. Inside Higher Ed highlighted this program and its benefits to students and their future employers. Teaching resilience is more involved than making kids take a difficult class.

"Teaching resilience gives students time and space to develop essential skills: self-awareness, flexibility and the ability to learn from experience and focus on solutions, not problems. It changes the way they look at their societal obstacles, their histories and themselves so they can confidently transfer those skills into their lives."

Resume Writing

And for the latest thinking on writing an effective resume, Fortune suggests you keep resumes simple and above all, honest. (Employers do check things out.)

Focus on education and then the work experience most relevant to the field you are entering.

That said, leave most of the storytelling to the cover letter. “Your résumé and cover letter shouldn’t look the same; that’s pointless,” Christine Cruzvergara, chief education strategy officer at Handshake, a career network for recent grads, tells Fortune. “Your résumé should show your breadth of experience while your cover letter shows depth.”

The article also goes into some more subtle suggestions regarding language used. They acknowledge that this generation is likely to go to social media for advice, and suggests a few good sources. And for this year’s graduates, the guidance suggests employers will be understanding of the difficulties they have faced during the pandemic.

About the Author

Beth Tallman

Beth Tallman entered the working world armed with an MBA in finance and thoroughly enjoyed her first career working in manufacturing and telecommunications, including a stint overseas. She took advantage of an involuntary separation to try teaching high school math, something she had always dreamed of doing. When fate stepped in once again, Beth jumped on the opportunity to combine her passion for numbers, money, and education to develop curriculum and teach personal finance at Oberlin College. Beth now spends her time writing on personal finance and financial education, conducts student workshops, and develops finance curricula and educational content. She is also the Treasurer of Ohio Jump$tart Coalition for Personal Financial Literacy.