"American Jobs"

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Candice: Welcome to Cracker Croakers. I'm Candice Bergeron, your hostess with the mostest.

Colton: And, I'm your other host Colton Wyatt.

Candice: I recently came across some impressive information pertaining to job growth I thought we might share with our readers, Colton.

Colton: What information is that, Candice?

Candice: Did you know there were 250,000 jobs added to the employment market in October of 2018? There was also a 3.1 percent year-over-year wage growth during this same period.

Colton: This is the highest wage increase since the recession began.

Candice: However, the quit rate of workers is the highest it's been since February of 2001.

Colton: These are workers departing their current positions in search of hopefully a better opportunity somewhere else.

Candice: On the down side, most of these workers opt for large companies and shun small businesses. This happens to the tune of one job being available for every four applicants who apply.

Colton: Taking a look at small businesses, there is one job available for every two workers who apply for them.

Candice: And, the trend grows even more extreme at the industry level.

Colton: There, job creation increases but the number of applicants continues to decrease. Agricultural, automotive, storage, and transportation businesses are especially feeling the brunt of this crunch.

Candice: The health of the economy demonstrates robust job growth, with only healthcare declining in small business job openings.

Colton: Rapid consolidation, and mega healthcare systems' mergers, appear to create this decline in healthcare job openings at that level.

Candice: Other industries that see the number of applicants decline at the small employer level are engineering, technology, business, and retailers.

Colton: This has been a trend for the last seven months.

Candice: Most job growth for large corporations occurs at the beginning, and the middle, of the year. There is also a large seasonal pattern demonstrated in this growth.

Colton: Many full time employees start job hunting in January.

Candice: August appears to be the month when a vast majority of seasonal workers start theirs.

Colton: It seems a high percentage of employees at small businesses work there because they feel they can make an impact on the company. On the other hand, many workers at large corporations tend to seek better wages and advancement opportunities.

Candice: Well, that about wraps us up for this edition of Cracker Croakers.

Colton: In that case, smarty-pants, we'd better say adieu. She's Candice!

Candice: And, he's Colton!

Candice and Colton: And, we invite you to join us again tomorrow for another entertaining edition of Cracker Croakers (Featuring Candice and Colton).

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