Recruitics Talent Market Index: January Report Highlights Industries with Strong Demand for Talent in 2024
Strong consumer confidence and changes in shopping behavior contribute to year-over-year increases for Hospitality, Retail, and Transportation & Logistics
Recruitics, a leader in recruitment marketing and AI-driven analytics, today released its latest Talent Market Index, which provides a look back at the industries with the greatest demand for talent as well as broader trends that shaped the labor market in 2024. The report indicates significant increases in talent acquisition prices for most industries and identifies surges in demand due to changes in consumer behavior.
The January Talent Market Index reports high demand for talent in Hospitality, Retail, and Transportation & Logistics in 2024, driven in part by strong consumer confidence and a shift by consumers to prioritize spending on experiences and e-commerce. It also discusses the differing demand for talent in Healthcare and Food Services, two sectors with prolific demand for talent in recent years that have diverged due to different factors.
“The January report shows that 2024 was a transformative year for the labor market, shaped by new trends in consumer behaviors and a rush to hire talent with specialized skills,” said Adam Stafford, CEO of Recruitics. “The Hospitality, Retail, and Transportation & Logistics industries saw year-over-year demand skyrocket as employers responded to higher levels of demand for hospitality experiences like travel and e-commerce shopping. Healthcare has remained a standout sector, driven by tailwinds such as aging demographics, while Food Services saw a decline in talent attraction prices due to changing dining habits amid rising food costs.”
Commenting on future talent demand, Stafford stated, “We remain optimistic on the labor market entering 2025 and expect employer demand for talent to remain high in these sectors benefiting from strong consumer confidence and shopping trends. Job seekers with specialized healthcare credentials or in-demand technology skills, like those in AI and cybersecurity, are likely to remain a priority for recruiters in the year ahead.”
Rising Talent Acquisition Prices for Industries Supporting Consumer Demand
Talent acquisition prices rose significantly in 2024 in sectors benefiting from increased consumer confidence, such as hospitality, retail, and transportation & logistics, as employers intensified recruitment efforts to meet expected demand.
- Hospitality: Talent attraction prices surged by 318.52% year-over-year due to strong demand for leisure and service roles in hotels, resorts, and travel-related businesses. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported steady growth, with 55,000 hospitality jobs added in December alone.
- Retail: Following a strong holiday season, retail hiring demand increased, resulting in a 288.57% year-over-year rise in talent attraction prices. This growth underscores the sector's efforts to adapt to the ongoing shift toward e-commerce.
- Transportation & Logistics: Despite a seasonal decline in demand following the holidays, the industry posted a 116.67% year-over-year increase in talent attraction prices, reflecting sustained long-term interest in logistics roles driven by e-commerce growth.
Differing Talent Acquisition Trends in Healthcare and Food Services
The report shows where industry growth trends have diverged with year-over-year growth in talent acquisition prices rising across all major sectors, except for Food Services. When compared to the sustained growth in prices to attract talent in Healthcare, the year-over-year decrease in Food Services reflects broader shifts reshaping labor needs within the industry. These contrasting trends demonstrate the unique challenges and dynamics in talent acquisition across different industries.- Healthcare: Prices increased 24.76% year-over-year as employers addressed the increasing healthcare needs of an aging population while facing a tight labor supply. Certifications, licensing requirements, and regulatory hurdles have intensified competition for talent. Although prices to attract talent decreased slightly by 3.68% month-over-month, this is likely to indicate some stabilization in demand rather than a downward trend.
- Food Services: While month-over-month prices saw a slight 1.85% uptick, there was a significant 29.49% year-over-year decline. This improved labor supply reflects a maturing recovery from pandemic-related disruptions and stabilization in staffing as employers adapted to changes in consumer dining behaviors and reduced competition for roles.
The Recruitics Talent Market Index aggregates billions of data points from job advertisements and proprietary Recruitics data, tracking key metrics such as Cost per Click (CPC) and Cost per Application (CPA) across diverse job categories each month. By providing unique insights into how these metrics drive recruitment trends, the Talent Market Index complements traditional labor market indicators like the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ jobs report and ADP payroll data.
Click for more information and access to the full report: Talent Market Index Report January Release
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About Recruitics
Recruitics delivered the first programmatic job advertising solution and continues to pioneer category-defining technology for end-to-end talent attraction, conversion, and analytics. Recruitics puts AI-powered tools and data into the hands of industry-leading strategists to improve hiring outcomes for talent acquisition teams worldwide. With a best-in-class platform and a commitment to continuous innovation, Recruitics makes it easy for the world's leading companies to attract and hire exceptional talent.
To learn more, contact us or write to info@recruitics.com.
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