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Despite the cooling labor market, which has turned some leverage in job negotiations back to employers, the competition for top talent remains fierce. Companies are holding on tight to the workers they hired during the pandemic while employees are clinging to the positions they have. As a result, finding and successfully hiring skilled team members will continue to be a challenge throughout this year.

Setting your business up for success starts by understanding and catering to candidate needs in the hiring process. Here are four candidate expectations that are rising in the 2024 hiring landscape.

1. Job Security

As concerns about a global recession persist—59% of Americans believe we’re experiencing an economic downturn—employees are becoming more practical about their career decisions. A recent study found 92% of workers are prioritizing job security, and the majority would not accept a potentially unstable role.

If you want to reassure your candidates that your company provides job security, highlight the stability of your organization. In the current hiring landscape, job seekers may prefer companies with:

  • Infrequent team restructuring
  • Low turnover and high retention rates
  • A positive business outlook in a high-performing industry
  • A sustainable hiring approach, adapted based on current economic conditions

If your company has experienced recent layoffs, it’s important to be transparent when candidates ask about the job cuts. However, you can alleviate candidate concerns by discussing your plans to achieve long-term sustainable growth—for example, if you’re implementing new technologies to minimize costs and avoid over-hiring (or over-firing).

2. Pay Transparency

When browsing job boards, modern employees have grown accustomed to looking for salary ranges and benefits before spending time on their applications. In fact, a recent ZipRecruiter survey found 72% of employers now post compensation information on all job listings. This trend—driven by rising pay transparency laws, economic uncertainty, and increased conversations around pay equity—has led job seekers to expect compensation information up front.

Pay transparency can help companies with particularly attractive salaries or benefits stand out. However, don’t hesitate to post compensation details even if your salary range is simply the market average—pay transparency can still be beneficial.

SHRM reports 82% of job seekers are more likely to apply to roles with a listed pay range, and 66% of employers that list salary ranges receive higher-quality applicants. Pay transparency prevents wasted time on recruitment and screenings while showing your commitment to pay equity.

3. Work-Life Balance

As organizations navigate technological advancements and labor shortages, many roles have become more demanding and complex. As a result, worker stress has reached an all-time high—when surveyed by Gallup, 52% of employees reported high levels of stress the previous day. It’s no wonder why nearly 94% of employees believe work-life balance is important, with most rejecting jobs that negatively affect the harmony in their personal and professional lives.

Highlighting job flexibility can help companies effectively respond to this growing candidate expectation. Hybrid opportunities, flexible hours, compressed work weeks, and unlimited PTO can all be compelling to modern job seekers. Employers can also show they value work-life balance by discussing mental health initiatives such as employee assistance programs (EAPs) or corporate wellness programs.

4. Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) has become a mainstream conversation in recent years. Today, 56% of employees have a positive opinion of organizations that emphasize DEI—and women, Generation Z, and non-white workers are particularly likely to value DEI in the workplace. As our society diversifies, as the U.S. Census Bureau projects it will through the 2090s, DEI initiatives will become an increasingly critical consideration for candidates in the interview process.

Proactively responding to this demand can help your business successfully recruit top talent in the 2024 hiring landscape and beyond. Find opportunities to highlight how you’re promoting DEI in the workplace throughout the interview process. For example, you can discuss your:

  • Diverse hiring practices
  • DEI trainings for employees
  • Employee resource groups (ERGs)
  • Mentorship opportunities for historically underrepresented groups

Elevate Your Position in the 2024 Hiring Landscape

If you want to position your company for recruitment success in 2024, it’s important to understand how candidate expectations are shifting. Job security and pay transparency are becoming critical to attracting applicants—and work-life balance and DEI remain key priorities for job seekers.

An experienced staffing firm can help you identify and leverage the areas in which your company stands out, all while connecting you to a vast pool of candidates that fits your needs. At ATR International, we further boost your recruitment success by embracing technology and the human touch to identify and nurture the best-fit candidates for your open positions.

Improve your hiring game. Reach out to ATR to learn how we can support your staffing needs in 2024.

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