In America, job seekers have reported that they are most concerned with the economy and age discrimination for next year. iHire published the findings from a survey of 4,430 U.S. workers from 57 industries. In total 41.1 per cent expect economic downturn or a recession to impact their career or job search in the new year, followed closely by age discrimination (40 per cent).
Responses to the question, “Which of the following are you concerned will impact your career or job search in 2023?” ranked as follows (respondents could select all applicable answers):
1. Economic downturn/recession (41.1 per cent)
2. Age discrimination (40.0 per cent)
3. Stress/burnout (24.1 per cent)
4. Employer ghosting (16.3 per cent)
5. Layoffs (15.6 per cent)
6. Pay cuts (11.2 per cent)
7. COVID-19 (7.4 per cent)
“With five generations in the workforce and more Americans delaying retirement, it’s not surprising that ageism is on job seekers’ minds nearly as much as the economy,” said Steve Flook, iHire’s President and CEO. “In 2023, employers should embrace hiring workers of all ages as part of their DEI strategies. That can involve anonymising and removing dates from applicant resumes, crafting job ads with more inclusive language, and training hiring managers and recruiters to recognise and combat bias.”
Although two out of five respondents worried about a recession, just 15.6 per cent and 11.2 per cent were anxious about layoffs and pay cuts, respectively. Stress/burnout ranked third (24.1 per cent), followed by employer ghosting (16.3 per cent) – an ongoing candidate frustration with unresponsive employers during the recruiting process. A mere 7.4 per cent said they were concerned with COVID-19.
iHire will release more results from this survey – including insights into employers’ hiring plans for 2023 – in its inaugural Hiring & Job Search Outlook Report, due to publish in mid-January.
