Jobs Report December 2022

December produced another strong month of job growth in regards to the Bureau of Labor Statistics which reported that employment increased by 223,000 jobs in December, and the unemployment rate
edged down to 3.5 percent. The biggest job gains occurred in leisure and hospitality, health care, construction, and social assistance.

Key Takeaways from the December 2022 jobs report

The major takeaways from the jobs report include:

• The economic recovery from COVID-19 related shutdowns continue apace
• The Fed’s interest rate hikes may be inspiring a soft landing for the job market overall, rather than a recession, though time will tell
• There was a bit of loss of momentum in rising wages, a good sign for employers
• If the job market is cooling, it’s cooling slowly

Inside the December Jobs Report

• Leisure and hospitality: jobs in this sector rose by 67,000, led by food services and drinking places (+26,000); amusements, gambling, and recreation (+25,000); and accommodation (+10,000).
• Health care: employment increased by 55,000 in December, with gains in ambulatory health care services (+30,000), hospitals (+16,000), and nursing and residential care facilities (+9,000).
• Construction: this sector increased by 28,000 jobs in December, as specialty trade contractors added 17,000 jobs.
• Social assistance added 20,000 jobs in December. Employment in individual and family services continued to trend up over the month (+10,000).
• Employment in the other services industry continued to trend up in December (+14,000).
• Retail trade increased by 9,000 in December.
• Employment in professional and business services remained little changed in December (-6,000).
• Temporary help services declined by 35,000 over the month and has fallen by 111,000 since July.
• Over the month, employment showed little change in other major industries, including wholesale trade, information, and financial activities.

What about inflation?

The inflation rate fell again in December, to 6.5% on an annual basis. That’s down substantially from the 9.1% peak in June 2022. Rising inflation has been sparked by a variety of concerns, including supply chain issues, high demand, the war in Ukraine and pandemic-related shutdowns.

The impact of inflation on executive recruiting

One of the biggest questions we get from our clients nowadays relates to the incredible acceleration of salary expectations against rising economic inflation.

Workers are facing higher costs from their landlords, grocery stores and at the gas pump and are expecting their employers to increase salaries accordingly.

And while we do find there are non-monetary incentives that can inspire your employees to stay with the company, at the end of the day, money talks. So what’s an employer to do if they want to attract top talent?

Read our article on the subject: Salary Talk: Coping with Inflation and its Impact on Recruiting

The State of Executive Recruiting in January 2023

2022 was another busy year for ACCUR Recruiting Services. As the economy rebounds from COVID, we are seeing a continued tight market for executive recruiting, especially in roles Director-level and above.

Read our article on the subject: The Year in ACCUR Executive Search 2022

Catch up on past jobs reports

Catch Up With Previous Jobs Reports

• Growth in November 2022
• Resilience in October 2022
• Mixed messages in September 2022
• August 2022’s cooling forecast
• Great job news in July 2022
• Continued growth in June 2022
• Strong growth in May 2022
• Big month of growth in April 2022
• March 2022’s strong growth
• February 2022’s blockbuster growth
• January 2022’s strong growth despite Omicron
• Promising news for hospitality in December 2021
• November 2021’s mixed picture
• October 2021’s robust gains
• A slower-than-expected report in September 2021
• The summer‘s roaring recovery trajectory in 2021
• Better than expected growth in June 2021, especially in travel
• A turnaround in May 2021
• An anemic April 2021 jobs report