How corporate America is solving the labor shortage

And this diversity will continue to grow in the coming years, economists predicted.

The share of US workers that non-white, Latino or both almost double at about 40% in 2019 from roughly 23% in 1979, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. With many seniors remaining economically active, after all 37 million US workers are 55 and older today. They account for nearly 1 in 4 of 160 million Americans are engaged in paid work. In 1979, less than 1 in 7 US workers were in that age group.

The government’s Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts that the the ranks of older workers will continue to rise in the coming years – including people who are well into their golden years. The number of Americans 75 and older remaining in the labor force nearly double between 2020 and 2030while the number of all workers increased by only 5.5%, according to the bureau.

The share of white workers will decline to 74.7% in 2031, from 77% in 2021, the bureau predicts.

The agency also tracks the prevalence of Hispanic workers who identify as white, black or mixed race. It says that the share of such workers is increased during that decade to 21.5% from 18.3% of workers – from 12.1% in 2001.

How are US employers responding to these changes?

I am a sociologist who studies how Racial and gender inequality persists in professional jobs. One likely outcome I hope to see is employers finding themselves forced to do a better job of attracting and retaining younger and older workers through diversity, equity and inclusion efforts.

Diversity initiatives are widespread

It is very common for employers to take diversity, equity and inclusion steps. A 2019 survey of 234 companies found that nearly 2 in 3 employed diversity managers.

Their responsibilities may vary. Other examples include creating a culture that values ​​and welcomes workers from diverse backgrounds and increasing the number of employees from backgrounds that are underrepresented in a particular field.

Financially this may mean bringing in more women, Black and Latino analysts. In nursing this may mean attracting more men of all races to a profession that is still dominated by white women.

In these fields and others, culture change may mean gathering data about which workers are underrepresented, trying to fill any gaps found, or changing dress and grooming codes which banned the hairstyles typically worn by Black workers.

2 common but bad strategies

Unfortunately, many companies use diversity strategies that have not been proven effective.

This may include mandatory diversity trainingusually in the form of professional webinars or workshops with interactive exercises.

Diversity training should make people better at working and interacting with colleagues and customers who have cultural backgrounds different from their own. But this often fail to do so.

One complication is that employees resent feeling controlled.

Another thing is that they might see this mandatory training as a waste of their time. And there is evidence to suggest that it is it can even be counterproductive by reinforcing rather than debunking stereotypes and alienating Black workers .

Another strategy that is more common than it should be use of skill tests that job applicants must pass as a condition of hiring. In tech, for example, a skills test might mean that applicants are asked to solve a particular problem so that hiring managers can assess their skills as well as their ability to work in tandem with one another. you team

The problem with skills tests is often hiring managers evaluate the results of these tests differently for Black and white workers because of a range of biasessome of which they may not know.

New research also shows that none of these popular methods lead companies to create theirs more racially diverse workforce through their hiring practices.

I believe that employers still use these strategies because they are easy, widespread and popular. Companies may stick with what they’ve used before rather than try something new.

Fortunately, new research points to more successful strategies.

What seems better

Employers can respond to today’s and tomorrow’s demographic realities by changing how they manage hiring. They can start by recruiting more workers from historically Black colleges and universities and Hispanic-serving institutions.

A good strategy to help retain workers of color is develop mentoring programs which is open to all, rather than by invitation only. That way, implicit biases exclude workers of color.

Companies can also implement what is called “skill development.”

Workers in skill development programs try out a variety of different roles in the organization. This strategy helps develop underrepresented workers’ skills and connects them with managers who might otherwise overlook them.

Older workers and the elderly

The aging of the workforce is particularly marked in some sectors of the economy. While the median age of a worker in the US is 42.2 in 2022, it 55.6 for bus drivers and 49.9 for librarians.

The prevalence of older workers in these jobs means that some employers need to listen to what these workers need in order to retain the staff they need.

Those changes may include enforcement gradual retirement options – that is, allowing employees to gradually transition from full-time work with the freedom to work part-time for several years before completely exiting the labor force.

It is also a good idea to strengthen measures that protect these workers discrimination based on age – which is a common occurrence even though it is illegal.

Older workers often find themselves ridiculed, harassed and bullied. They are also passed over for raises, promotions and other opportunities.

But employers should not adjust their expectations to accommodate only the needs of older workers. A growing share of employees under 40 are also demanding themselves.

These workers, especially those in their 20s and 30s, are more open with their bosses about their preferences for work-life balance than their colleagues who are 50 years old and above.

Many workers in their 20s or 30s are rejecting a work model that requires them to be on call and available at all times, demanding inflexible scheduling and placing constant demands on employees. employee. They want jobs that enable them to be more fully involved with their families and leisure activities.

Employers may have no alternative

Finally, the great diversity of the workforce in terms of age, race and ethnicity may force employers to change at least some of their practices.

With the aging of workers born after 1990, employers may have to work harder to accommodate their needs – especially if they stand to replace older workers who are retiring or moving to part-time job.

Whether it’s by design or necessity, I believe that employers will hire more and more diverse staff. In addition, I see that they have no choice but to allow their workers to have more flexibility and freedom.

Here’s Harvey Wingfield a professor of sociology, arts, and sciences at Washington University in St. Louis.

This article was reprinted from The Conversation under Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

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