Offering robust benefits—including a 401k with a generous match—are increasingly important to employee recruitment and retention, especially in the “epic talent war” predicted in 2022.
The new data …found that employee retention, workforce planning, and vaccine mandates were also among the most challenging issues facing HR departments in the new year.
A new survey from HR solutions XpertHR provider finds nearly nine in 10 employers said recruiting and hiring will be either “somewhat” or “very” challenging in 2022—making the tight labor market and Great Resignation even more challenging for the recovering U.S. economy.
Despite these concerns, approximately two-thirds of employers expect their workforces to grow in 2022.
The new data—which represents a 23% jump in recruiting and hiring concerns, compared with last year—also found that employee retention (79%), workforce planning (67%), and vaccine mandates (66%) were also among the most challenging issues facing HR departments in the new year.
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“While employers foresee challenges recruiting talent, a majority also anticipate growing their workforce, making the labor shortage even more of an acute pain point,” Amanda Czepiel, Head of Content at XpertHR, said in a statement.
To counter these challenges, employers:
- Plan to increase salaries and hourly wages for incoming workers (60%), while 66% intend to increase salaries and hourly wages for existing employees.
- Expect to increase flexible work options, such as hybrid, fully remote, or flexible hours for new hires (48%) and existing staff (44%).
- Will increase advertising around job vacancies (44%).
Employee retention tactics also include opportunities to develop employees’ careers within their roles (e.g., certifications, training) and increasing employee engagement initiatives, both of which were cited by 53% of respondents.
“These recruitment and retention efforts are natural next steps and are consistent with what we’ve seen from employers eager to overcome the labor shortage,” Czepiel explained.
She cited XpertHR’s Salary Budget Survey 2022, which projected a median salary budget increase of 3% across all three employee groups covered by the survey: exempt; nonexempt; and officers/executives. I
In that survey, nearly eight in 10 organizations cited recruitment/retention as an upward pressure on total salary budgets for the coming year.
With more than 20 years serving financial markets, John Sullivan is the former editor-in-chief of Investment Advisor magazine and retirement editor of ThinkAdvisor.com. Sullivan is also the former editor of Boomer Market Advisor and Bank Advisor magazines, and has a background in the insurance and investment industries in addition to his journalism roots.
