As employment picks up, 64 percent of workers say they've been approached about a job by another employer in the past year, according to a recent survey by Right Management, a provider of talent and career management solutions of ManpowerGroup.
Some of these approaches were not necessarily blatant. Of the respondents who were approached, 48 percent said employers approached them directly while 19 percent said the employers were more indirect.
Either way, interest from other employers is picking up.
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"Despite a continuing tough job market, a majority of employees claim to be getting approaches from other companies," said Monika Morrow, senior vice president of career management at Right Management.
"While we might take this as an indicator that the job market is heating up, it's important to keep in mind that we saw the same finding in 2010, when 54 percent reported being approached by another company about a job. I suspect we don't have a new trend so much as a sign of hope on the part of many in the North American work force."
Although many respondents say they are being approached, these feelers may not be as legitimate as the respondents think, Morrow said.
In many cases, these job feelers could simply be workplace gossip. Still, employers should be aware that employees are receiving greater exposure to job openings, which could be a challenge for retention.
"The 'indirect' job feelers may be just about hearing of an opening from a fellow worker or possibly something via social networking," Morrow says. "How real are these feelers? We cannot say. However with the increased use of sites like LinkedIn – which is also reported to be the tool of choice by recruiters – many people may be hearing more about job opportunities. Such technology is enabling communication channels to be opened."
Still, these findings support previous studies that have found most employees are searching for new employment, and most are doing so during work hours, Morrow notes. This suggests that many employees are unhappy or bored with their jobs.
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