For many of us finding a new job at the beginning of the year is a priority, but with every year bringing new work trends, what can we expect to see in 2019?
Drop in Unemployment
Over the past few years we have seen a steady decrease in unemployment and in 2018 global unemployment dropped to its lowest in 4 decades. This is great news for job seekers as it gives them more of an advantage in the job market in 2019, with more choice of roles and less competition.
Skills Gap
With many Baby Boomers hitting retirement age in 2019, we are going to see a decline in skills across many industries. The baby boomers are the generation born after the second world war and before 1965, associated with high post-war birth rates. Over the years in many industries they have become the highest skilled generation, so this decrease will lead to an increasing skills gap, particularly in labour industries.
Gen Z
This year we will be welcoming more Gen Z to the workforce. Gen Z refers to anyone born from 1997 onwards, meaning the oldest of the generation will be turning 22 in 2019. According to recent research Gen Z are highly motivated and driven by success. Unlike the generation before (the millennials) Gen Z are apparently less likely to change jobs regularly and are looking for more stability from their employers.
Data
With technology development we’ve seen a rise in the importance of data, with GDPR and consumer data being a hot topic in 2018. In 2019 we will see this expand even further into employee data, with more tools than ever to analysis data to see who the most suitable candidates are based on their experience, skills interests and personality.
GIG Economy
In 2019 it has been suggested we will see significant changes in the structure of work with the rise of the GIG Economy. The GIG Economy has been a popular phrase over the past few years that refers to a free market system, where individuals work on temporary contracts or project work. According to research The GIG Economy workforce is currently growing 3 times faster than the traditional workforce, and doesn’t look like it’s going to slow down any time soon.