According to a new survey released by the New York Federal Reserve, workers in the United States are now demanding better wages, as well as changing their jobs more often than before. This new change in how American workers conduct themselves comes amid a changing labor market, as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Because of labor shortages around the nation, many companies in various industries are raising employee wages, as well as offering benefits such as sign-on bonuses — all in order to attract new workers.
The survey by the New York Fed polled what American works believe should be the minimum wage for their services. For the year, those polled believe that workers should make at least $68,954.This is a sharp increase from what was polled about a year ago, though it is a slightly lower number than the $71,403 salary, polled in March 2021.
The survey also revealed consumer and economist expectations about the labor market. According to the NY Fed, the likelihood of receiving a job offer in the next four months has risen. The likelihood of receiving a job offer with the wages expected has also risen.
This survey also revealed just how workers in the United States feel about their jobs and careers. Previously, it was revealed that there were more workers retiring or changing their career paths as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The pandemic changed a lot, including how people spend their time and spend their time at work. Therefore, it’s not a surprise that this increase in job changes is still prevalent today. According to the survey, the number of workers who moved to a new job increased to about 5.9% in July. A year earlier, this percentage was at 4.4%.
This latest survey comes amid a rather disappointing Labor Department report that revealed hiring in the United States has severely slowed down. While July saw a huge surge in hiring, August sharply slowed down. As a result, the labor market has continued to be plagued with problems. Companies are still suffering from labor shortages, especially during the back-to-school season.
There are some economists who do believe that more people will return to the workforce — thereby increase hirings — in the fall. More students are returning to school, so it is thought that more people will also return to work after the summer. While school has begun in many states already, there are also cities and states that don’t begin school until September. Therefore, we may not see this increase in hiring, if it does happen, until the end of September or October.
There have been some positives, in regards to the labor market, however. The Labor Department recently revealed that unemployment rates have slowly continued to go down, which means that fewer people are being laid off than before. Weekly jobless claims have also slowly gone down. So, while people aren’t returning to the workforce as initially anticipated, at least people have also stopped being laid off in mass amounts (as was seen in 2020 when the pandemic first started).
