The ‘Big Stay’ continues: fewer workers looking for new jobs

(WJAR) — The number of people looking for a new job continues to shrink.

Employment experts coined the term the “Big Stay” last year when it became apparent that the “Great Resignation” was over and employees were sticking around.

Now, new data from Robert Half shows that only about 35% of workers are planning to look for a new job– that’s down from 49% of workers last summer.

“I think a lot of time that went into them looking during the Great Resignation and searching to make a move to another position – they took their time to really think about what was most important to them,” Robert Half Providence Branch Director Katelyn Aziz said. “Was that flexibility? Was that compensation? Was that career path?”

She continued, “Now that they’ve found that and are in the seat, they’re happy, they’re still feeling satisfied.”

But all that career satisfaction is making it challenging for employers who are trying to attract top talent.

Still, the folks at Robert Half said there are certain types of job listings that always attract applicants.

“Definitely transparency, we found, is a big thing,” Aziz said. “So whether that be salary – making sure that’s posted on the job posting, if there’s any sort of flexibility with remote work after a certain while – even if it’s not from when someone starts at the organization – making sure that you’re highlighting that.”

This survey found that younger generations are still more likely to search for a job, with 45% of Millennials and 44% of Gen Z employees planning to look for new opportunities.

By contrast, just 13% of Baby Boomers and 26% of Gen X are planning to look for new work.