Working for Your Employees: Recruitment strategies for the labor shortage.

• Author: Barbour, Tracy

Recruiting the right talent can be challenging for employers-even in a loose labor market with ample job candidates. In today's tight labor market, companies have a tougher time finding qualified applicants for hourly, entry-level, and managerial positions.

The labor shortage is causing organizations in Alaska and elsewhere to be more resourceful when pursuing prospective employees. Take, for example, Providence Alaska Medical Center (PAMC) in Anchorage. PANIC is part of Providence Alaska and the Providence St. Joseph Health (PSJH) system. With approximately 5,000 employees throughout Alaska, Providence Alaska is the state's largest private employer.

As the state's largest hospital, PAMC depends on having enough skilled employees to offer a full spectrum of care. That's why the healthcare provider goes out of its way to "meet candidates where they are," according to Providence Alaska Chief Human Resources Officer Florian Borowski. This includes asking managers to try to accommodate candidates' scheduling preferences. "We often find that our leaders are able to do that when they find out what a candidate's needs and limitations are--especially those with special skills and unique backgrounds," he says. "Flexibility is really important."

It's also important for Providence to move expeditiously when screening, interviewing, and hiring potential employees. This can be particularly challenging in the healthcare field, where background checks can take thirty to forty days and there are other requirements to ensure employees can safely care for patients. "Candidates who are out in the marketplace have a lot of options, and they move quickly," Borowski says. "We're calling on our core leaders, our supervisors and hiring managers, to stay in touch with those coming on board so they know where they are with the background check process. Communication with our new hires is more important now than ever."

Where Have Workers Gone?

Economists nationwide cite various causes for the sparse labor supply, ranging from robust job growth and record-low unemployment to demographic shifts and aging populations. And the labor shortage-which affects nearly all industries-will remain challenging for years, as the number of working-age people declines, according to the 2023 "Hiring and Workplace Trends Report" by online job platforms Indeed and Glassdoor.

The labor market is particularly tight in Alaska, which is dealing with an aging population, migration losses-especially of working-age individuals-and lower workforce participation. "Alaska has historically been a young state and remains so relative to the United States as a whole, but the number and percentage of older people has grown dramatically over the last couple of decades, increasing fivefold as a percentage of our total population," reports the January 2023 "Alaska Economic Trends" published by the Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development (DOLWD).

In addition, fewer people are moving to Alaska, and many of those who come generally do not stay long enough to apply for a Permanent Fund Dividend, which requires one year of residency. These trends are notable...