The Mirage of Actual Job Losses Has Been Exposed…and the Truth is Not Pretty
In a report by CNNMoney today, the public has learned that the job losses that have been reported by government agencies is not quite accurate; to the tune of nearly a million lost jobs. During the past few years as the “Great Recession” has made its way into our workplaces and bank accounts, the number of people who were reportedly unemployed during this time hovered at about 7 million. As if that number wasn’t staggering enough, it has been discovered that the US Labor Department’s numbers were underestimating job losses by about 1 million jobs.
With the economic downturn having officially begun in December of 2007, the number of losses is astronomical for such a short period of time. One expert that was interviewed during the CNNMoney story said, “"It confirms that things were actually worse on the ground than what the reports suggested." This new information has been uncovered as a result of a revision being done by the Bureau of Labor Statistics as they review annual payrolls for U.S. workers.
Some of the major contributing factors to the huge job losses between April 2008 and March 2009 included Lehman Brothers filing for bankruptcy protection, the complete halt of the stock markets and financial sector, and the economy sinking into the depths of a near Depression. The scariest part of their findings thus far is that nearly 5 million jobs were lost during that single, twelve-month period of time. This loss is staggering and is almost double the jobs that were lost since the records have been kept (dating back to 1939).
The good news is that many companies are starting to hire again. Economists are predicting a total gain of about 13,000 jobs for January (according to Briefing.com), after a loss of 85,000 jobs during December 2009. This means that more companies will be ready for employment background screening and criminal background check services again. For many hiring managers, it may feel like it’s been ages since they have been given the green light to hire new employees.
The temptation may be to choose people who say they have worked in a particular field and are qualified to the hilt. However, resume lies are everywhere and because of this tough economy, hiring managers are actually finding that more candidates are lying on their resumes than ever before. This phenomenon is most likely due to several factors including the amount of time the applicant has been unemployed, the specific field they work in, and what shape their personal finances are in.
Remembering to hire an employment background screening company like AccuScreen can make all the difference in hiring the best employees. From a criminal background check to salary history and job title verification, they do it all. One easy-to-read report, guaranteed accurate, and ready within 1-3 days! What more can you ask for when getting ready to hire new employees? As an employer, you can’t afford not to use AccuScreen’s services!
