IMPACT ON THE EMPLOYMENT MARKET

 

More often than not any meeting that we tend to be involved in will at some point raise the age-old questions “How’s the market”. As much as we can be a touch glib about it being an overused question, the reality if the “state” of the hiring market has a genuine impact on how an individual or organisation will determine their recruitment strategy.

In its simplest form, the recruitment market can be driven by a number of known variables, which are a combination of internal and external factors. Internally a company will have a number of factors driving their recruitment strategy at any given time.

The HR policy of a particular organisation. The recruitment strategy falls under HR policies. It comes first defining the recruitment process. How an organisation chooses to approach hiring at any particular time will determine whether it will indeed be hiring or not.

The size of the firm is an important factor in the recruitment process. If the organization is planning to increase its operations and expand its business, it will think of hiring more personnel, which will handle its operations.

Externally the biggest macro influence on hiring strategy could arguably be. The Labour market For instance, if the supply of people having a precise skill is less than the demand, then the employing will need more hard work. On the other hand, if the demand is less than the supply, the hiring will be relatively easier.

Secondly the Unemployment rate.  If the unemployment rate is high in an exact area, the hiring of capitals will be simpler and easier, as the number of candidates is very high. In contrast, if the unemployment rate is low, then recruiting tends to be very difficult due to less number of resources.

Whilst these are relevant are points that need to be addressed. I would advocate that they don’t really get under the skin of what affects the Australian and more specifically the Sydney market. I probably can’t go as far to prove these factors buy-in may opinion the following do hold some credence.

The Housing market. You never seem to be able to go a coffee/beer/dinner or even get in a cab without someone mentioning the insanity of house prices in Sydney. It seems to dominate conversation, mindset and often our very own approach to personal and professional life. It seems so ingrained in every facet of life that it must have some impact on the hiring market?

Obviously, the housing market (like most markets) is driven by confidence. Therefore as the housing market has dipped over the past 12 – 18 month I feel that this an affected confidence and consequently I have seen individuals pause or put on hold projects/acquisitions as a slight feeling of negativity has swept across our mindset over recent times. Furthermore, as the media fuels talk of the housing “meltdown” and other overdramatic and often-inaccurate coverage this seems to decrease confidence across all markets.

Closely related are both financial and political markets. At the moment we will more than likely have a general election shortly, which can obviously have a huge impact on the recruitment paradigm. Moreover, as financial markets rise and fall so do the confidence of an individual or organisation to move forward.

Therefore I feel that whilst there is still room at the table for traditional factors to affect the “ market” it appears that the housing market has claimed another victim – the hiring market!