Job Market May Be Strengthening As Companies Struggle To Fill Positions

While the unemployment rate still sits at 8.2 percent, nine out of 10 U.S. employers are finding it difficult to fill open positions, according to a study by career management firm Right Management.

According to the poll of more than 630 firms, 27 percent said they have difficulty filling certain jobs, while 61 percent said they struggle to do so on occasion, and 13 percent seldom struggled. The amount of companies claiming they often struggle filling positions rose 4 percent from last year.

"There’s a corresponding drop among those who say they seldom face such a problem," said group executive vice president Bram Lowsky, citing the 3 percent drop in those that seldom struggle to fill positions. "Perhaps this is a sign of a strengthening job market."

As federal funds to train the jobless continue to dry up, companies increasingly may look internally before conducting an outside search to fill a position. Of those polled, 77 percent said they rely on a combination of internal talent development and select external hiring and 19 percent rely mainly on external talent, while only 4 percent rely completely on internal resources.