If you compare the workforce to a literal pool of talent, hourly employees are definitely the salmon. These workers swim the stream of the pool in a completely opposite direction than most traditional, salaried full-time workers, and that’s because they want different things out of a job. That’s why recruiting hourly employees differs so much in terms of strategy from traditional recruiting.
The rise of the on-demand economy has greatly increased not only the number of people seeking hourly, contingent, but also the demand for that work as well. Since these salmon are much more difficult to catch than the other fish in the talent pool, it’s important for recruiters to understand them and their desires in order to reel them in with hourly recruiting strategies.
Recruiters also need to adapt their methods in order to recruit hourly employees. What works for traditional salaried workers isn’t always the right approach when seeking hourly workers. If recruiters want to dip their toes into the hourly worker waters, they’ll need to know just who these workers are and some outside-of-the-box tips for catching them.
Recruiting hourly employees: Statistics on hourly workers
Despite popular belief, a majority of the US workforce is hourly. Many of these hourly employees are younger, loyal, tech-savvy and do possess some form of higher education. Check out a breakdown of their demographics below:
- 56.7% of the US workforce is hourly, which equals 77.2 million workers aged 16 and older.
- There’s an even, 50/50 split between women and men hourly workers.
- 70% of hourly workers are full-time employees.
- 60% of hourly workers are under the age of 45, with the largest percentage of those (24%) between the ages of 25–34.
- 17% of hourly workers have more than one job.
- 63% of hourly workers have been with their current company for more than two years.
- 84% of hourly workers own a smartphone, while 69% own a tablet.
- 73% of hourly workers have some form of college or higher education, with 45% having a four-year degree or higher.
How to Hire Hourly Employees
1. Make job titles easy to search and recognize when recruiting hourly employees
A job title is the first thing most candidates will see and be cognizant of when looking for work. If it’s a crazy moniker they can’t understand or don’t recognize, they’ll likely scroll past it, especially when perusing through lengthy job boards. A job posting’s title is also the main factor for a company’s SEO, meaning the easier it is to search for, the more hits and candidates a job posting will receive. Be sure to avoid job titles that are either too eccentric, codes the function of the job in colorful jargon or is too vague about what the heck the job actually is when recruiting hourly employees.
2. Adapt a specific strategy when recruiting hourly employees
Bringing night-crawlers as bait to lure salmon isn’t going to reap a very bountiful catch — these pink buddies like roe. The same can be said for the type of worker recruiters are looking for. What works for traditional salaried workers is not going to work when recruiting hourly employees. Social media is key in attracting and connecting with hourly workers. Facebook and Twitter specifically are great for sourcing and networking with hourly workers because they spend most of their online time on these sites, as opposed to LinkedIn which is more geared towards salaried, full-time workers. Additionally, local job boards are great for recruiting hourly employees as many of the job functions requiring these workers require local talent that can be recruited at low costs.
3. Go mobile-first when recruiting hourly employees
Demographics prove that the vast majority of hourly workers are tech-savvy. With that said, adopting technology in recruiting and hiring practices is a no-brainer for attracting these workers. Making job applications mobile-friendly goes a long way to bolstering completion rates of job applications, since many hourly workers are on-the-go and want applications that can be completed quickly from just about anywhere. Additionally, keeping tabs on applicants and updating them about next steps in the application process proves much more fruitful when utilizing SMS text messages. In fact, Fountain found a 97% open rate on text communications with candidates, blowing traditional email open rates out of the water!
4. Be transparent when recruiting hourly employees
Many hourly positions don’t boast the generous benefits that traditional salaried positions offer. To that end, it’s important to be upfront about what exactly will be offered to these hourly candidates at the offset in order not to waste their time and set the recruitment process back by vetting a candidate that wants xyz out of their job. This is also a great way of beating out the competition if there are special things that warrant being highlighted that other companies don’t offer. Whether it’s flexible hours, the ability to work remotely, an unmatched professional culture or on-the-job training, putting these aspects front-and-center (not to mention the hourly rate being offered) is always the best bet.
Armed with knowledge about who hourly workers are and some tips and tricks on luring them in, any recruiter should feel confident and ready to net the hourly workers they need to get the job done. Happy fishing!
