Labor and Industry Trends

NOT TOO HOT AND NOT TOO COLD

The U.S. labor market unsurprisingly continues to show signs of cooling as the overall economy rebalances post pandemic which saw an unprecedented hiring surge. Employers added 150,000 jobs on a seasonally adjusted basis, the Labor Department reported on Friday, a number that fell short of economists' forecasts. At the same time, employment figures for August and September were revised downward, subtracting more than 100,000 jobs from earlier reports. The unemployment rate, based on a survey of households, rose fractionally to 3.9% from 3.8% in September. There were also several extenuating factors in the October BLS data. About 96,000 people reported being out of work because of a strike or labor dispute, the most since 1997—largely because of auto industry walkouts that have now been settled. Layoffs, another barometer of the labor market's health, remain well below historical averages. Measures of labor force productivity have also made impressive gains in recent months.

What Does this Mean for Clients?

On a recent earnings call, Kforce CEO Joe Liberatore said it remains clear technology will continue to evolve and play an increasingly instrumental role in powering businesses. Clients across industries are poised to take action on a backlog of desired investments. "We expect these important technology investments to be high priorities once the macro uncertainties begin to clear," Liberatore said. "Technology investments are simply not optional in today's competitive and disruptive business climate." While clients continue to recognize highly skilled talent is essential to their success, they also see our services as a cost-effective solution for their projects. Kforce COO Dave Kelly added, "our clients expect us to continue to broaden our service offerings beyond traditional staffing to include managed teams and project solutions."

by Michael Blackman

CURRENT LABOR INDICATORS

February Jobs One-Month Net Change

3.9

Total Unemployment

150,000

Total Job Gains

4.1

Wage Growth (YoY)

77.8K

74K

67K

35.5K

29K

25K

16.4K

15.4K

13K

1.1K

-9K

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

Leisure + Hospitality

Health care + Social assistance

Retail trade

Government

Professional + Business services

Construction

Mining + Logging

Financial activities

Manufacturing

Transportation + Warehousing

Information

Chart: Gabriel Cortes / CNBC

Monthly Job Creation in the U.S.

150K

568K

352K

350K

324K

800K

Published November 8, 2023

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

Jul 2022 Through OCT 2023

600K

400K

200K

Jul 2022

Oct 2022

Jan 2023

Apr 2023

Jul 2023

Oct 2023

Aug 2022

Sep 2022

Nov 2022

Dec 2022

Feb 2023

Mar 2023

May 2032

Jun 2023

Aug 2023

Sep 2023

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

290K

239K

472K

248K

217K

281K

105K

236K

165K

297K

OCTOBER 2023

This Ruler is for the Space Above and Below the Header Text Area. It Should Reach from the Bottom of the the Nav Bar to the Top of the Header Text. And From the Bottom of the Header Text to the Bottom of the Header Photo.

This Ruler is for the Space Between the Bottom of the Hero/Header Text and the Subheader Copy. Check Your Spacing for Consistency.

This Ruler is for the Space Between Modules/Macros/Sections. It Should Reach from the Bottom of the Previous Module/Macro to the Top of the Next Section.

This Ruler is for the Space Between Text/Buttons/Callouts. Check Your Spacing for Consistency.

by Michael Blackman

Labor and Industry Trends

May 2023

Beyond the Headlines

Business and professional services led the unexpectedly strong job gains in May. This is yet another indication that the market for highly skilled talent remains intact, despite all the headline layoff news. Total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 339,000 in May—almost double the Wall Street consensus of +195k. Meanwhile, the unemployment rate remains low at 3.7%. In times of economic uncertainty, many companies have turned to flexible resources to minimize economic risk.

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

4.3

Wage Growth (YoY)

Total Job Gains

339,000

3.7

Total Unemployment

CURRENT LABOR INDICATORS

What Does this Mean for Clients?

Beyond the oft confusing headlines, tech job openings across industries remain solid at 234,000+, according to market research from CompTIA. Top skills are still very much in demand, including software developers and engineers, IT project managers, data analysts and IT support specialists. Interestingly, about one in five tech job openings are in emerging areas like AI. Historically, large-scale innovation increases the demand for technologists, who are often the drivers and architects behind transformative projects. Clients, your Kforce partner is well equipped to help you structure the best solution for your organization. Particularly in technology, which tends to be project driven, a time and materials solution can be very appealing. If you are a highly skilled technologist, Kforce works with a significant majority of Fortune 100 companies and can put you in exciting career-building opportunities.

339K

904K

414K

254K

364K

370K

568K

352K

350K

324K

290K

239K

472K

248K

165K

253K

Monthly Job Creation in the U.S.

February 2022 Through May 2023

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

200K

400K

600K

800K

Feb 2022

Mar 2022

Apr 2022

May 2022

Jun 2022

Jul 2022

Aug 2022

Sep 2022

Oct 2022

Nov 2022

Dec 2022

Jan 2022

Feb 2023

Mar 2023

Apr 2023

May 2023

Published June 8, 2023

SPACE IN BETWEEN MODULES/ Macros/ Sections

SPACE IN BETWEEN HEADER AND SUBHEAD + Subhead & Body

SPACE IN BETWEEN BUTTONS

Michael Blackman

Learn More About Kforce

As Chief Corporate Development Officer at Kforce, Michael Blackman, a 32-year Kforce veteran, is the primary focal point for the firm with the Wall Street and financial communities. He is regularly sought out by leading economists for his perspectives on the economy and labor markets, and he contributes to a number of key proprietary economic publications.

CHIEF CORPORATE DEVELOPMENT OFFICER

Connect with me

Meet the Author

Learn More About Kforce

As Chief Corporate Development Officer at Kforce, Michael Blackman, a 30-year Kforce veteran, is the primary focal point for the firm with the Wall Street and financial communities. He is regularly sought out by leading economists for his perspectives on the economy and labor markets, and he contributes to a number of key proprietary economic publications.

Michael Blackman

CHIEF CORPORATE DEVELOPMENT OFFICER

Meet the Author