State labor market stays tight, so businesses start throwing in cash, perks

The latest unemployment report is out, and it shows what employers such as Lagoon amusement park already know - the job market is so tight it's a struggle to remain fully staffed.
    Utah continues to lead the country in job creation, with employment growth of 4.5 percent for the year that ended in May, the Utah Department of Workforce Services said Tuesday. The state has been creating jobs at a high rate, well above the national average of 1.4 percent, since January.
    In all, about 54,000 jobs have been created in the Utah economy in the past year, raising total employment in Utah to 1.25 million. That's an average of 4,500 new jobs in the state per month.
    For Lagoon, a regional attraction that employs about 2,500 people during its peak summer season, staffing the park is even more difficult than last year, said Dick Andrew, executive vice president of marketing.
    While minimum wage is $5.15 per hour, he said Lagoon couldn't pay that and get enough workers. He said the company starts workers at $7 and throws in perks to draw teenagers and anyone else in need of a summer job.
    There's free park admission for each worker and discounted park admission several times each summer for their families. The park also offers discounted food and an employee cafeteria.
    New this year is a "bounty" - as much as $100 in free food - to employees who bring a friend or family member in to apply for a job who ends up being hired.
    More than ever, the park has to be creative in its recruiting, Andrew said. "It seems like everybody already has a job."
    The numbers support that statement.
    Utah's unemployment rate was 2.5 percent in May, the same as in April and markedly lower than the national average of 4.5 percent.
    Economists generally consider Utah to be in a state of "full employment" - meaning virtually anyone who wants a job can find one, although it may not be at the pay rate they desire. Only about 33,100 Utahns were unemployed in May, compared with 39,600 in May 2006.
    So when will Utah's hot job market cool down?
    Last year, economists had predicted it would slow by now.
    Today? "It seems like we'll keep rolling along at this level through the end of the year," said Mark Knold, chief economist for the Department of Workforce Services. "It could be two years down the road before we see any noticeable slowdown."
    The high rate of new jobs is creating headaches for employers, many of whom are struggling not only to recruit but to retain workers. For workers, the tight labor market means higher wages and more job security.
    Knold said he had thought such low unemployment would eventually slow job growth because employers couldn't fill positions.
    But they are still able to find workers, which leads Knold to believe that many new hires are from out of state, especially from areas plagued by high unemployment.
    Aside from recruiting out of state, companies are offering creative incentives to get the workers they need.
    SOS Technical, a Utah technology staffing company, is giving referral bonuses to help its client companies fill available positions. To jazz things up, the company recently began offering an Apple iPod Nano as an alternative to a cash bonus to anyone who refers someone who gets hired by one of their client companies, said Jake Smith, account manager of SOS Technical in Salt Lake City.
    Cold hard cash remains a popular incentive, especially in industries with pronounced worker shortages such as nursing and long-haul trucking. Trucking company Sharp Transportation in Wellsville, for example, offers a hiring bonus of $1,000 payable to employees who remain on the job for at least a year. There are also referral bonuses of about $300 for existing employees who refer a friend.
    Mark Adams, who handles recruiting for the 90-employee company, said he polls other employers and updates his company's incentive offers regularly.
    "It is definitely hard to find drivers," he said. "You have to be as competitive as you can be."
    David Rose, a site leader for call-center operator Convergys in Murray, has increased the referral bonuses in recent months in a bid to get more job applicants.
    The company, which employs about 6,500 people in Utah, used to offer up to $500 in referral fees to an employee who brings in a new hire. To get the full referral bonus, the new employee has to stay on the job for at least six months. The bonus being offered right now has been increased to as much as $750.
    Depending on the job, the company also has been offering signing bonuses to help fill positions.

Lesley Mitchell