PALM BEACH COUNTY, Fla. — The unemployment rate in Florida declined in November to a rate of 4.5%. The number keeps dropping almost two years after historic unemployment losses.
Tom Veenstra, the Vice President of Administration at CareerSource Palm Beach County, told WPTV’s Tory Dunnan it is a job seeker’s market right now.
“We've had more job openings in Palm Beach County, then we have unemployed people,” Veenstra said on ``To the Point.” “It's an incredible time for someone to look for a new job, or upgrade to a better one.”
Businesses are offering incentives to job seekers such as signing bonuses, wage increases and child care. Veenstra said companies are even hiring people over the phone without an in-person interview.
In Palm Beach County, the industries looking to hire the most employees are health care and hospitality. Meanwhile, customer-facing jobs are in low demand.
“You've seen kiosks at the home improvement store where you check yourself out, or you might go into a restaurant, and there would be a kiosk there for you to order. “We're seeing trends like that replace people who used to be on the front lines,” Veenstra said.
The pandemic also changed how employees view work. Veenstra said more people are looking for remote work and more flexible schedules.
“One thing that COVID has taught us is that smart businesses are placing more value in the worker than they have before. They value the contributions that the worker has made and that’s really the atmosphere most job seekers are looking to either start or maybe jump to,” Veenstra said.
Florida’s unemployment rate is currently lower than the national rate.