These are the jobs Bay Area employers are having the hardest time filling – San Francisco Chronicle
Jason Alderman, Chief Communications Officer, works at the Fast office in San Francisco. New data from the job site Indeed shows the jobs that take the longest to get filled in the Bay Area. Among, them software engineers for tech companies.
Which job is harder to fill in the Bay Area right now, software engineer or deli worker? According to data from job search site Indeed, both take about the same amount of time, pointing to how huge numbers of workers quitting to seek out new jobs and better pay could be reshaping the local labor market.
The figures looked at job titles that have the highest percentage of still being open after 60 days, both nationally and in the Bay Area, on Jan. 12. The snapshot found many jobs requiring technical know-how remained open for more than two months, while jobs in the restaurant and hospitality industry were being filled more quickly.
Some jobs like meat carver and coder also appeared to take longer to fill in the Bay Area than nationally, in what could be a symptom of California’s slow pace of economic recovery during the pandemic.
“That’s consistent with what we’re continuing to see since June of 2021,” said Michael Bernick, an attorney with the law firm Duane Morris and a former director of the state’s Employment Development Department.
Bernick said the difficulty filling jobs statewide in a range of professions hasn’t let up since last year, even after expanded federal unemployment benefits expired. He said health concerns about the virus, child care responsibilities and uncertain school openings could all factor in.
A higher percentage of some postings — like deli associate, baker and barista — are remaining open for much longer on the site in the Bay Area when compared to jobs in other parts of the country.
A smaller percentage of jobs in restaurants and bars posted on the site are staying open for more than 60 days locally and nationwide, according to the data set.
Some of that could be further evidence of what has been dubbed the Great Resignation, a trend during the pandemic which has seen millions of Americans quit their jobs each month in search of better opportunities.
That phenomenon has also seen huge levels of hiring as well, however, as businesses desperate for workers have increased pay and benefits to try to compete for willing hands, particularly in hospitality jobs.
Sean Randolph, the senior director of the Bay Area Council Economic Institute, said the data from Indeed were somewhat limited but still surprising. “What I would expect to see is that it would still be very hard to hire people,” he said.
“Many (businesses) are offering better pay or benefits,” Randolph said. With a shortage of particularly restaurants and service workers, it could be that workers are able to be more choosy about where they work with so many openings.
Randolph said it could be that “people are seeing some of those improved benefits and taking them.”
Chase DiFeliciantonio is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: chase.difeliciantonio@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @ChaseDiFelice
Chase DiFeliciantonio is a reporter at The San Francisco Chronicle on the Transformation team, where he covers tech culture, workplace safety and labor issues in San Francisco, Silicon Valley and beyond. Prior to joining The Chronicle, he covered immigration for the Daily Journal, a legal affairs newspaper, and a variety of beats at the North Bay Business Journal in Santa Rosa. Chase has degrees in journalism and history from Loyola University Chicago.
