The 2025 workforce: Ghost jobs, HR anxiety & RTO tension

According to the report, 81% of recruiters admitted that their companies post “ghost” jobs, or positions that are either fake or already filled. Even more shocking – 36% of recruiters say about a quarter of the jobs they post are ghost jobs and 21.5% say the same about half of their organizations’ job postings.

Recruiters say the primary motivations for posting ghost jobs include to maintain a presence on job boards even when they aren’t hiring (38%), to assess the effectiveness of their job descriptions (36%), to build a talent pool for the future (26%), or to gain insights into the job market and competitors. Additionally concerning, the report found that 86% of employees surveyed said they fear human resources and 85% said they hesitate to approach HR to discuss work-related issues.

The top reasons employees said they avoid HR included lack of approachability (37%), fear of repercussions (31%), and lack of trust in confidentiality (37%). When workers did decide to report an issue to HR, the report found that 90% of workers felt they didn’t adequately address it.

Finally, the report found that many workers and employers are feeling increased tensions due to RTO mandates in the coming year. Thirty-six percent of employees who responded say there is no perk their company could offer to justify a full-time office return. With 88% of employees reporting they are currently experiencing burnout and 1 in 5 saying they think about quitting their job every day – organizations will need to rethink best practices heading into 2025.