By Eric Morath
BALTIMORE -- A former heroin addict. A 25-year-old bouncing
between temp jobs. A mother trying to re-enter the labor force.
Workers like these, struggling in the labor market since the
recession, are finding new support from retailers who need to fill
a record number of openings heading into the holiday-shopping
season.
There were 650,000 open retail jobs in August, the Labor
Department's latest count. That is just below the highest level on
record back to 2000. Despite national chains such as J.C. Penney
and Sears announcing store closures, the number of retail stores
has grown the past five years, while Amazon.com Inc. and other
e-commerce firms hire many of the same workers.
Add in openings at restaurants and distribution centers, and
demand for less-skilled workers is high and labor supply is low.
The U.S. unemployment rate in October of 4.1% was the lowest in
nearly 17 years.
In response, retailers are considering workers they may have
passed on before and expanding training programs to create
qualified candidates. Some are raising wages.
The demand provides an opening for workers like David Townes,
who said a previous heroin addiction derailed his work as a
collections agent and a court clerk. He received training designed
by the National Retail Federation trade group from Goodwill
Industries, an organization that offers social services and runs
thrift stores.
The 59-year-old attended a job fair in Baltimore this fall for
those who had newly completed the retail-fundamentals training. He
arrived in a pressed gray suit, paisley tie and matching pocket
square. Days later, Macy's hired him as a sales associate for a
Towson, Md., store.
"I'm very excited and happy," he said."I'm thanking God to be in
a position to work this soon following the training program." He
said the certificate he earned gave him an edge because it showed
he had suitable skills, like how to deal with an irate
customer.
Macy's Inc., one of six national retailers recruiting at the
fair, plans to hire 80,000 workers for holiday-season jobs. The
company considers those workers as a talent pool for year-round
positions. In a tight labor market, Macy's is focusing recruiting
efforts along bus routes and other transit options that would help
workers to reach stores, said Anne Voller, group vice president for
talent acquisitions.
"There are parts of the country where more jobs are posted than
there are people to fill those jobs," she said. "We have to go as
fast as possible to talk to everyone that does apply."
Still store operators say some applicants lack the ability to do
math and basic English-language skills.
This year the Retail Federation, the Washington trade group that
represents the industry, started a program to prepare the
unemployed for entry-level retail jobs.
In a "thriving economy, fewer people are searching for jobs and
fewer people need to take on second jobs," said Ellen Davis, senior
vice president for research and strategic initiatives at the
federation.
The federation expects about 5,000 people will earn the
fundamentals credential over 12 months.
The program also aims to extend stints in the industry, a
critical element of countering the labor shortfall. Some firms
judge a successful hire as one who stays more than seven days, Ms.
Davis said. Turnover in the industry is about 20% higher than for
the private sector overall, according to the Labor Department.
Training previously unemployed Americans also is a way for
retailers to avoid competing with higher-wage industries.
Retail wages are growing more slowly than for the overall labor
force. The average hourly wage for a retail worker was $18.25 in
October, up 1.8% from a year earlier, according to the Labor
Department. The average private-sector worker earned $26.53 an
hour, up 2.4%.
The tight labor market is putting some upward pressure on retail
wages. In September, Target Corp. said it is raising starting wages
to $11 an hour starting this year, and to $15 an hour within three
years. The company, which is now hiring 100,000 holiday season
workers, also retooled training programs for its stores' apparel,
beauty and electronics departments.
Target hired Amelia Witherspoon -- who like Mr. Townes had
earned a certificate -- before she even left the Baltimore job fair
this fall. That was a big difference from a year earlier, when
another large retailer told the 34-year-old she didn't have enough
recent work experience. She had left the workforce for several
years to care for young children.
"I'm so glad to be able to help support my family," she
said.
Wal-Mart Stores Inc., the nation's largest retailer, has also
ramped up internal training of hourly workers.
The company began offering additional instruction to new hires
in 2015, and rewarded those workers with a $1 an hour raise upon
completion. More than 375,000 Walmart employees have been or will
be trained through that program this year.
In addition, the retailer is looking to hourly staff to move up
into roles for everything from store managers to app developers. It
started a leadership academy to prepare staff for more advanced
jobs.
"There is a need for greater skill in retail jobs than ever
before," said Kathleen McLaughlin, president of the Walmart
Foundation, which supports industry training efforts in and outside
the company.
Charles Shaw, 25, is among those getting snapped up. He had been
unemployed for more than a year, and before that bounced between
seasonal jobs at the Baltimore Orioles stadium and an Amazon
fulfillment center. He said the Retail Federation's program
prepared him for the job fair, where BJ's Wholesale Club Inc.
offered him a year-round position.
"Having that stability makes me happier than you can realize,"
Mr. Shaw said. "At previous jobs, I never knew when I was going to
be let go."
Write to Eric Morath at eric.morath@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
November 05, 2017 08:14 ET (13:14 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2017 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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