US economy makes a strong start to 2017. Is your company ready?
US economy makes a strong start to 2017. Is your company ready?
Early doubts this year about the job market in the United States were erased by the January jobs report, which recently announced that the economy added 227,000 positions in the first month of 2017. That number is much higher than most economists predicted and is a leading indicator that the steady growth displayed by the economy toward the end of last year is still in full effect, especially as it relates to the availability of jobs and the number of companies looking to fill them.
The January job creation figure is the highest such measurement in four months. Economists now hope the trend will continue as the country emerges out of an eight-year recovery from the Great Recession. And all signs point to that being the case. The stock market continues its positive climb. Hourly wages grew in January by 0.1%, and they have grown 2.5% during a one-year period. Workers’ time spent on the job remains unchanged, which is also a positive indicator. There’s even a silver lining in the slight uptick in the overall unemployment rate to 4.8%. The increase comes because there are more people looking for work, thanks to the massive amount of job openings and the draw those open positions create for people who have long been unemployed. These factors are causing companies to pay their workers more, which will only make the labor market stronger.
What does this mean for you and your company? It could mean business expansion opportunities, increased client development potential, and an uptick in customer activity. It will likely mean that your company has or will have open positions to fill, and hiring the right people for these positions will be the difference between fully capitalizing on this time of opportunity or falling victim to a competitive labor market.
Here at Schaffer Associates, we’ve been helping companies HIRE SMART for more than two decades. We have industry expertise across various economic conditions, and we understand what it takes to position your company in a way that takes advantage of a stable, steady economic resurgence like the one we’re operating in currently. Jobs are open, people are looking for work, and companies know it’s hiring time. So don’t hesitate – call Schaffer Associates today.
Schaffer Associates is a national executive search firm specializing in talent acquisition for the hardware, home improvement, building materials, and consumer products industries. As premier executive recruiters with expert focus on your industry, we help you HIRE SMART. Contact us today for help with your officer-level or mid-management level search.
Call us at (704) 535-9939 or find us at www.SchafferAssociates.com