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Job Offer Compensation Disappoints Unemployed

Still looking for a job? Reports of recovery and job creation abound, but unemployment levels remain high and many are still searching for steady income. New research from CareerBuilder’s consulting arm, Personified, indicates that more than struggling to find a job, the currently unemployed are struggling to find a decent job. While senior level engineers […]

Written By: Leah Gabriel Nurik

Sep 23, 2010

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Still looking for a job? Reports of recovery and job creation abound, but unemployment levels remain high and many are still searching for steady income. New research from CareerBuilder’s consulting arm, Personified, indicates that more than struggling to find a job, the currently unemployed are struggling to find a decent job.

While senior level engineers and technology professionals are fielding multiple offers and being offered incentives to sign, the same is not true for those who are unemployed.

The study says that since becoming unemployed, 17 percent of unemployed workers received job offers, but 92 percent rejected the opportunity. The number one reason cited for rejecting the offer was insufficient pay. Fifty-four percent of those surveyed report the offered pay was 25 percent below the salary earned in their most recent position. Other factors included a long commute, a lower title, the position being outside of their field, little room for career advancement and a poor hiring process.

"Rather than jumping on the first job offer that comes their way, workers are assessing which opportunities really make the most sense for them in terms of compensation and long-term potential," said Mary Delaney, President of Personified.

Gender also is playing a role in who is snagging the offers. Unemployed women are less likely to receive job offers than their male counterparts. Fourteen percent of women compared to 20 percent of men reported receiving job offers. And, unemployed men reported a higher incidence of being low-balled on salaries—56 percent of men reported a 25 percent reduction in pay for job offers versus 49 percent of women.

Medical benefits are costly and top of mind for the unemployed, too. The study shows the number of people living without health insurance is staggering and shocking. As of today, according to the study, 49 percent of all unemployed workers reported that they do not have health insurance. For workers who have been out of work for more than a year, that number stretches to 55 percent.

The study’s results pertaining to job search activity show that the political firestorm leading up a possible vote on extending unemployment benefits is, most likely, completely unfounded in the reality of people’s behaviors. More than half (52 percent) of those surveyed reported an extension of unemployment benefits will not change their job search strategy. 31 percent said it would give them more time to find a job that better fits with their career goals, and 15 percent stated an extension would actually create a greater sense of urgency to find a new position.

Job Offer Compensation Disappoints Unemployed

Leah Gabriel Nurik

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