The Skills Gap Isn't Over. Here's What Employers Can Do About It...

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Even with so many jobs disrupted this year, the skills gap is far from over. The rise of remote work made it easier to recruit candidates from all over the country (or world), but employers are still missing out on valuable talent from underrepresented groups.

We're talking about high-quality talent pools that remain untapped and underemployed for no good reason.

How can you find the talent you need?

1. HIRE OLDER WORKERS

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the labor force growth rates of those 65 and older are projected to outpace all other age groups over the 2014-24 decade. More people are working into their later years. But the American workplace is far from friendly towards older job candidates.

If your workplace doesn't value older workers, you're doing your organization a disservice. Visit the SHRM Blog to read how and why HR people can and should end ageism.

2. HIRE PEOPLE WITH CRIMINAL RECORDS

Nearly 700,000 individuals are released from prison each year. But too often they are denied the opportunity to put their skills to work due to deeply rooted biases and harmful misperceptions. Organizations that are unwilling to hire the formerly incarcerated are missing out on a variety of benefits, including:

• Building an inclusive, diverse, and successful workplace

• Access to a widely available pool of talented workers

• Demonstrating good corporate citizenship 

• Building stronger communities

Take the first step and learn how you can build better opportunities for people with criminal records. Learn about the SHRM Foundation's Getting Talent Back to Work initiative.

3. DITCH THE DEGREE REQUIREMENTS

Many companies are choosing to do away with mandatory bachelor's degrees in their job requirements.

Are there some jobs where higher education is critical? Yes. Are there also many jobs where requiring a degree isn't the best option? Yes. Many people CAN succeed without a college education, but they need YOU to give them a chance. Read more about the pros and cons of mandating college degrees on the SHRM Blog.

4. HIRE VETERANS

Veterans face many challenges, myths, and misperceptions when searching for post-service employment.

"There is very little awareness of what military culture is," says Margarita Devlin, principal deputy undersecretary for benefits at the VA. "They need to make decisions on the fly, be adaptable. The team approach is stronger than anything in the private sector.”

Companies need to be veteran-ready, not just veteran-friendly. Are you? Check out the SHRM Foundation's Veterans at Work initiative to learn how you can empower your HR professionals to attract, hire, and retain veterans.

5. HIRE PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES

"Research shows individuals who are differently abled bring tremendous perspective, talent and value. In other words, inclusive hiring is not just the right thing to do; it makes good business sense," states Wendi Safstrom, Executive Director of the SHRM Foundation.

According to the SHRM 2019 research report Employing Abilities @Work, 97% of HR professionals and 92% of people managers surveyed said employees with disabilities regularly perform the same as or better than their peers without disabilities. Yet, they still face employment challenges.

How can you increase your hiring efforts for this population and create inclusive systems to support ALL employees?

The war for talent is raging. But your organization doesn’t need to be defeated.

We know that great workplace cultures are diverse and inclusive, and that there are diverse pools of talent out there that are not being included.

Building workplace cultures that embrace and promote inclusion is good for people and business.