US Economy: Businesses To Hire Despite Inflation, Post-Pandemic Economic Uncertainty

A recent survey of U.S. employers revealed businesses plan to post job openings for the third quarter of 2022 amid an inflationary and unpredictable post-pandemic economy.

ManpowerGroup surveyed over 6,000 employers for its "Employment Outlook Survey." The survey looked at businesses' hiring intentions for 2022. Among those surveyed, just under half plan to have job openings during the third quarter.

The survey recorded a net employment outlook (NEO) for businesses of 38% for the third quarter, breaking 2021’s previous record. The outlook for the third quarter of 2022 is a jump by nine percentage points from the third quarter of 2021. It is also up by three percentage points from last quarter.

"Despite chaotic market conditions and the challenges of inflation, we are living through one of the strongest job markets in U.S. history," Beck Frankiewicz, president of ManpowerGroup North America, said about the survey findings.

The industries most ready to hire are technology, telecoms, IT and communications and media. These industries combined reported a strong hiring outlook with 59% expecting to hire in the coming months.

That contradicts some of the more recent actions of many tech businesses. Companies like Uber and Meta each announced they would slow down hiring. Carvana and Robinhood announced cuts in their workforce, while Microsoft, Amazon and Alphabet all reported raises for some of their employees.

When tackling inflation and an uncertain economy, companies have different approaches.

Some are not as eager about hiring as others. While half of the employers report interest in hiring, 34% “plan to keep work levels steady." Fourteen percent expect to let go staff.

Following tech, finance, banking, insurance and real estate were the second most likely to hire (45%). Construction (42%), manufacturing (40%,) and wholesale and retail trade (40%) are also among the industries most likely to hire.

The least likely industries to hire include not-for-profit (39%) and restaurants and hotels (35%). The education, health, social work and government industries (33%) also reported a low likelihood of hiring. Primary production was the least likely to hire (26%).

Frankiewicz said that an “empowered workforce is here to stay.”

“To meet their hiring objectives and attract and retain the talent that enables them to grow, employers will need to focus on three key areas: flexibility, employee well-being and upskilling and reskilling efforts,” Frankiewicz added.