For Young Workers, the Rejections Pile Up

When it comes to the current job market, firms may be sacrificing tomorrow’s leaders for today’s needs. 

In a shift that may have long-term ramifications, new data shows the current unemployment rate for workers aged 20-24 is higher than it was before the pandemic, and that the monthly hiring rate for those with little to no previous experience is down to 13% from a peak of 20%. Postings for internships and entry-level jobs are also down, according to data from job-search site Indeed.com. As a result, jobs for college graduates are projected to fall by 5.8% in 2024, the first year of negative growth since 2018.“There’s a reluctance on the part of employers to bring on entry-level workers,” says Paul Fogel, professional search sector leader for software at Korn Ferry.

It’s not just a matter of this group’s lack of skills and experience, either. Recruiters and hiring managers say the demands of young job seekers regarding pay, advancement, remote work, and other perks are out of step with the current market. JP Sniffen, practice leader for the Military Center of Expertise at Korn Ferry, says that younger workers have unrealistic expectations born out of the hiring craze following the pandemic. “Managers have all but given up on finding the young people they need,” says Sniffen. 

Traditionally, of course, younger workers have generally been in demand as alternatives to more expensive veteran employees. Experts say that the recent reluctance to bring in more youth could eventually pose leadership and succession issues for companies. Shanda Mints, vice president in the Recruitment Process Outsourcing Analytics and Implementation practice at Korn Ferry, says that the need for skills-based training makes internal talent pipelines for succession more important than ever. “Entry-level positions are essentially investments in the future,” she says. But between investing in AI—which some estimates suggest could eliminate more than half of entry-level jobs by 2028—and the raw number of experienced candidates flooding the market, Mints says hiring entry-level talent isn’t currently a priority. 

There’s also the matter of training, says Tamara Rodman, a senior client partner in the Culture, Change, and Communications practice at Korn Ferry. The budget cuts across industries over the last two years hit training hard. At the same time, companies laid off layers upon layers of middle managers who could step up to train new hires, and those who remain are stretched too thin to do so. “Companies aren’t hiring as many entry-level workers because there’s no one to train them,” says Rodman

The unfilled entry-level roles of today lead to the succession-planning challenges of tomorrow, says Kate Shattuck, global co-leader of the Impact Investing and ESG and Sustainability practices at Korn Ferry. She says firms risk creating a leadership and management vacuum by not building a bench of young talent. “It sets the stage for a crisis ten years from now when you don’t have people to take over,” says Shattuck. 

Learn more about Korn Ferry’s Talent Acquisition capabilities. 

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