Dive Brief:
- Sixty percent of employers have hired at least one worker since the onset of the pandemic, according to Aug. 20 findings from The Manifest, which describes itself as a business news and how-to website. Nearly half of companies have hired 10 or more in the same time period, the survey of 500 HR professionals and 234 additional employees found.
- Sixty-one percent of HR professionals said they expect new hires to remain for two or more years, The Manifest found.
- More than a third of HR professionals surveyed said work-life balance issues will motivate employees to leave their companies.
Dive Insight:
The Manifest's findings may come as a surprise, as many employers turned to hiring freezes or reduced hiring in anticipation of the financial effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Willis Towers Watson reported in late March that 4 in 10 companies planned to implement such measures. It also found that 1 in 5 companies reduced or eliminated hiring for seasonal workers, with 35% of respondents saying they planned to do the same.
Some companies, including grocers and select retailers, have ramped up hiring. Walmart reduced its hiring process to "as little as 24 hours" in order to bring on some 150,000 associates. And CVS adopted a tech-enabled hiring process to onboard 50,000.
Employers' attrition fears are likely lowered due to shaky economic conditions brought on by the pandemic, yet their responses to the virus are still important. Many workers in a recent survey by outsourcing firm Yoh said they would consider changing jobs if their employers failed to do enough to protect workers during the pandemic. Employer responses that focus on empathy will encourage loyalty from candidates, workers and customers, Mercer said in April.
