By Adriana DiNenno, Senior Product Manager at Health eCareers and Member of the 3Sixty Insights Global Executive Advisory Council
Remember back when you used to go to a clothing or shoe store and you’d get more white-glove service? You wouldn’t just walk in and grab your shoes. They would fit you for the shoes, to ensure they were the right size, and you were happy.
Many companies have completely gotten away from that. Part of the issue is the worker shortage in retail (more on this in a moment). Meanwhile, one of many things I love about the area I am working in is that we provide that white glove service to find health care professionals opportunities where they are a fit.
Allow me to share a quick story….
I had the pleasure of attending two Broadway musicals the other day. As I sat in a restaurant, not far from Times Square, I overheard someone say, “What happened to all the people?” It was kind of ironic for this person to say this when surrounded by hundreds of people, in the heart of Manhattan.
What she was referring to is the worker shortage.
Before I recently started my new job for a company that focuses on aiding physicians, nurses, etc. with finding jobs, I had honestly been ignorant to the fact that the shortage is widespread. It is not confined to just your local restaurants, supermarkets, or retail stores—it’s impacting our healthcare system, too.
As our population grows and ages, the demand for physicians continues to grow, too—faster than the supply, resulting in an estimated shortfall of between 37,800 and 124,000 primary care and specialty physicians by 2034 (source: www.amc.org).
I don’t know about you, but I take for granted that every time I need to go to the doctor, I get an appointment, and have an excellent physician, especially being so close to Philadelphia.
I was flabbergasted when I recently found out, through my new position, that the time-to-hire for certain positions in health care can be up to a year. One hospital told me that a physician requisition has been open for two years!
What is now called the retirement tsunami among physicians is upon us. This means that more physicians are reaching retirement age. If you combine this with quiet quitting and the great resignation, what does that leave us?
A lot of vacant jobs.
Did you know that it takes 227 days to source a neurologist? Source (must pay to view data): APR in-house physician and provider recruitment report
This is unsettling for me, as a girl whose father had a stroke less than two years ago and really relied on the neurologist who cared for him.
As I’ve been analyzing the data and the similarities in recruiting, in general, whether for physicians or retail store cashiers, there are many similarities.
Within health care, the most important reason that people are leaving their jobs is work–life balance. Physicians no longer want to work long hours or weekends. The same goes for that person running check-out at the gas station. We all want more.
The other factor is pay and pay equity. Many people are changing their jobs out of a desire for higher compensation. This is even the case in health care. Source: Health eCareers Salary Guide.
I am proud of what I do. I help people get jobs. Previously, I helped anyone get jobs. Now, I am helping those who help us with our health get jobs. Let’s end the shortage. Our health depends on it.
As an HR professional, I really hate the term “quiet quitting”. People are realizing that their lives are worth more than killing themselves at work and I am LOVING the turn in the tides. If retail stores can’t pay a liveable wage, then they should close. Period. The tide has turned, and you can either jump onboard or be left behind.
Lia – Although I agree, I dislike the term quiet quitting as well. However, regarding your retail store comment, I disagree. The majority of jobs within retail and fast food for example, are not meant to provide livable wages. They are meant to be income supplementers… All jobs are not meant to be career based jobs, nor are the meant to provide livable wages.