It’s officially July, and we are over halfway through another year. The midyear point is a great time to step back and take an eagle’s-eye look at the talent trends of 2015. In this article, we’ll examine the skills gap influencing current talent trends and the staffing forecast for the remainder of the year.
Skills Gap – Top 10 Hardest-to-Fill Jobs
According to the ASA Skills Gap Index for the 1st quarter of 2015, there were 181 occupations nationwide that qualified as hard to fill, an 8% increase from the 4th quarter of 2014. The top ten hardest-to-fill jobs were:
- Occupational therapists
- Heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers
- Physical therapists
- Photographic process workers and processing machine operators
- Occupational therapy assistants
- Speech language pathologists
- Physicians
- Merchandise displayers and window trimmers
- Nurse practitioners
- Physician assistants
Seven out of ten are healthcare occupations, up from five of ten in the previous quarter. This indicates that the economic recovery, along with the impact of the ACA, is tightening the talent market in the healthcare industry.
FoxHire can confirm these consistent recruiting trends: we are seeing a strong interest in contract placements for healthcare professionals this year, as predicted at the beginning of the year. Healthcare made up the largest share (28%) of contract placements in 2014, and so far, 2015 looks to be no different.
Looking Forward – The Second Half of 2015
The labor market looks strong for the remainder of the year, judging by CareerBuilder’s 2015 Midyear Job Forecast. 34% of employers plan to hire temporary or contract workers over the next six months, an improvement over 2014 (33%).
Additionally, workers are showing more confidence and willingness to take the next steps in their careers. 29% of workers plan to change jobs in the next 12 months, as opposed to 25% last year.
The top contracting-friendly industries in which employers plan to add jobs in the second half of 2015 include:
- Information Technology
- Mobile, Search or Cloud Technology
- Cyber Security
- Big Data Management and Interpretation
- Engineering/Manufacturing
- Alternative Energy Sources and Robotics
- Accounting/Finance
- Financial Regulation
- Big Data Management and Interpretation
- Human Resources
- Wellness (Healthcare)
- Recruiting
FH Trend Alert
FoxHire is seeing a trend in increased hiring of contract recruiters. This indicates that contracting will continue to maintain a strong foothold in the improving economy.
