The Labor Department reported on Friday that 215,000 new jobs were created in March. This was the 66th straight month of jobs creation. Furthermore, staffing increases were broad based including the R&D, engineering, scientific, IT and technical areas we specialize in as a technical recruiting firm. As a result, hiring companies need to employ more investigative methods to quickly uncover the best talent to fill their professional vacancies
Thorough Background Investigations Are Paramount To Quickly Filling Recruitment Needs
Regardless if you pursuing technical talent or general professionals, a sound and thorough background investigation strategy is essential. As I shared in my 9th Commandment of Recruiting (please go to https://strategicsearch.com/technical-recruiting-tips/technical-recruiting-tips.php and click on #9 below) , this should include examining criminal and civil records. It should also include verifying educational degrees and very thorough drug screening. This is the case because past behavior is the best predictor of future missteps. That is why we include a comprehensive background investigation on all on retained searches for our clients!
Labor Department Reported 5% Unemployment And 215,000 New Jobs Created in March
The U.S. economy continued to add jobs at a vigorous pace in March, a sign of the domestic labor market’s resilience despite economic turmoil overseas. Nonfarm payrolls rose by a seasonally adjusted 215,000 in March, the Labor Department said Friday. The unemployment rate, obtained from a separate survey of U.S. households, edged up to 5.0% in March.
Economists And The Fed See Continued Jobs Strength
“The continued strength in employment increases the likelihood that global economic and financial developments’ will not stop unemployment from continuing to trend down in the year ahead,” said Jim O’Sullivan, chief U.S. economist at High Frequency Economics.
In a speech Tuesday, Fed Chairwoman Janet Yellen emphasized proceeding “cautiously” on rate raises, noting that global developments, particularly in China, “pose ongoing risks.”
The Fed in December increased short-term interest rates for the first time in nearly a decade. At the time, Ms. Yellen said the economy appeared to be “on a path of sustainable improvement.”
Wide Spread Jobs Creation
Our engineering recruitment and technical recruitment divisions have been seeing more demand than supply for key technology talent for the past 8 months. Additionally, Friday’s jobs report demonstrated continuing strength in domestically oriented service sectors, and jobs reductions in sectors more exposed to global headwinds such as the strong dollar and low energy prices. Retail Trade, construction, health care and food service and drinking places all rose.
Unfortunately, manufacturing and mining declined. Manufactures lost 29,000 jobs in March, after losing 18,000 in February. Mining fell for the 15th straight month by loosing another 12,000 jobs.
Worker Participation Rose
The share of Americans participating in the labor force rose to 63.0% in March. The measure bottomed out at 62.4% in September, which was its lowest level since 1977. However, it has crept up steadily as more people joined the workforce or began searching for work.
Wages Were Up!
Average hourly earnings of private-sector workers rose by 7 cents last month to $25.43, following a 2-cent drop in February. Wages rose 0.3% from the prior month, matching economists’ expectations, and have climbed 2.3% from a year earlier. Year-over-year wage growth had reached 2.6% in December, it’s highest pace since 2009.
“I feel that we are due for more of a bounce-back in wages going forward, but there would be no compelling reason for Fed officials to get excited unless or until we begin to break new ground on a year-over-year basis,” said Stephen Stanley, chief economist at Amherst Pierpont Securities.
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