Some people still having issues finding work despite 10.7M open jobs

(CNN) – The nation’s unemployment rate is sitting at 3.5%, the lowest level in the last half-century, and the demand for workers is still strong.

There are currently 10.7 million open positions, but despite this, some Americans are still having issues finding a job that best suits them.

“On the surface is still a fairly strong labor market, but if you go a couple of layers under, you are starting to see more significant cracks in the surface [that] suggest we should eventually see it in those more popular headline-type labor market readings,” said Liz Ann Sonders, chief investment strategist with Charles Schwab.

There appears to be a slowdown in hiring, as seen in this week’s job openings survey. Hires have dropped to 6.1 million, the lowest since Feb. 2021.

“My perception of the job market was there were a ton of jobs out there, and it was going to be ‘easy’ to find a job. And that actually hasn’t been the case,” job seeker Karly Pavalinac said.

After she didn’t hear back for a position at Nike, she sent them a cake with her resume on it and made headlines.

“I’ve since talked to a bunch of people at Nike, but still no job,” Pavalinac said.

Of the 10.7 million open jobs, some companies are advertising for positions they aren’t actively trying to fill.

It’s called “pipelining talent” – companies post jobs to develop a pool of candidates. Recruiter Laura Mazzullo said she sees companies do it all the time.

“Candidates don’t know that’s what’s happening. So, they’re being pipelined when actually they think they’re applying for an active job. And this is where we’re seeing a bit of a disconnect,” Mazzullo said.

As the labor market weakens, job seekers can’t be as picky.

Of the jobs added last month, most were lower-paying positions.

Food services added 215,000 jobs with an average hourly wage of $13, while finance and insurance lost 83,000 jobs that pay on average $36 an hour.