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Study finds 81% of recruiters have posted ghost jobs, remote work boosts talent acquisition and HR supports FTC ban on noncompetes

GUAYNABO, Puerto Rico, Aug. 7, 2024 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- ®, a leading career and resume service, today announced the findings from its , which examined the latest recruiting industry trends and issues, including the impact of remote work on talent acquisition, the extensive use of ghost jobs, the efficacy of AI recruiting tools, and recruiters' feelings about the recent Federal Trade Commission (FTC) decision to ban noncompetes nationwide.-

Polling 753 recruiters across the U.S., the survey found that despite very high adoption rates (96%), only 35% of recruiters believe that AI recruiting tools are very effective in helping them identify the right candidates.

The survey also found that a significant number (81%) of companies are posting ghost jobs, a practice that can lead to extra friction and frustration for job seekers as not every role they apply for is an open position.

"While AI can potentially enhance recruiting efforts, our survey shows it's not quite the game changer we may have hoped for yet," said Jasmine Escalera, a career expert for MyPerfectResume. "Additionally, the widespread use of ghost jobs seriously undermines the job search, creating distrust amongst companies and job seekers. Talent acquisition must lead with a human-first approach to the process and foster more transparency and trust."

Other highlights of the survey include:

• 83% of recruiters believe the rise in remote work opportunities has improved the quality of the applicant pool.
• Fake job posts are very prevalent, with 36% of recruiters saying about a quarter of their job posts are ghost jobs, 22% saying that about half of all the ads they post are fake, and 17% reporting up to 75% of the job postings they list are not jobs they intend to fill.
• 96% of recruiters use AI recruiting tools but only 35% believe they are very effective in helping them identify the right candidates.
• 97% of recruiters agree with the recent FTC decision to ban noncompetes nationwide.

Remote Work Is a Boon to Applicant Quality
Recruiters faced many challenges during the pandemic due to an extremely tight labor market. Despite a softening labor market, recruiters still struggle to find enough qualified candidates to fill their open positions.

The survey found that remote work opportunities are helping to widen the applicant pool. In fact, most recruiters (83%) surveyed say they believe remote work has improved the quality of the applicants they attract.

When asked how the availability of remote work affected their willingness to consider candidates from different geographic locations, 92% of recruiters said that it has increased their willingness. Here's how the responses break down:

• 32% said it significantly increased their willingness
• 60% said it somewhat increased their willingness
• 7% said there was no change in their willingness
• 1% said it decreased their willingness

Still, the overwhelming preference is to hire locally. When asked whether they prefer hiring local candidates over remote candidates, most recruiters lean toward local applicants.

• 49% have a strong preference for local candidates
• 47% have some preference for local candidates
• 4% have no preference

Despite their preference for local hires, recruiters participating in the survey were extremely open to talent from different geographies when asked if they would consider candidates who needed to relocate.

• 73% of respondents said they would consider relocation, and their employer provides relocation support
• 26% said they would consider hiring a non-local candidate, but their employer does not provide relocation support
• Less than 2% of recruiters said they would not consider a candidate that would need to relocate

Ghost Jobs Continue to Haunt Job Seekers
Ads for jobs companies don't plan to fill continue to populate job boards, with 81% of recruiters admitting that their employer posts ads for jobs that either don't exist or are already filled.

When asked what percentage of their company's job posts aren't real, here's how the numbers break down:

• 36% said about a quarter are ghost jobs
• 21% said about half are ghost jobs
• 18% said less than 10% are ghost jobs
• 17% said up to 75% are ghost jobs
• 5% said none are ghost jobs
• 3% said almost all are ghost jobs

Recruiters stated many reasons for posting ghost jobs, with the top reasons being to test the market's response to hard-to-fill jobs (38%), maintain a presence on job boards even when the company isn't hiring (38%) and assess the effectiveness of their job descriptions (36%).

Here are the other reasons companies post job listings that are not active:

• 26% to build a talent pool for the future
• 26% to gain insights into the job market and our competitors
• 25% to assess how difficult it would be to replace certain employees
• 23% to make the company look viable during a hiring freeze
• 20% to improve the reputation of the company
• 14% to improve the company's online visibility
• 12% to collect resumes en masse

Despite Soaring Usage, AI Screening Tools Fall Short
The survey found that AI screening tools are being used by the vast majority of recruiters, with 96% of recruiters using AI screening tools. Less than 1% of those surveyed reported never using AI or automated screening tools to review resumes.

When asked how often they used the tools to screen resumes:

• 26% say they always use AI or automated tools to screen resumes
• 36% say they frequently use AI or automated tools to screen resumes
• 34% say they sometimes use AI or automated tools to screen resumes
• 4% say they rarely use AI or automated tools to screen resumes
• Less than 1% say they never use AI or automated tools to screen resumes

Despite the widespread use of AI tools, recruiters don't find them very effective. Only 40% of recruiters surveyed reported finding the tools somewhat or very effective.

• 35% said they find AI or automated tools very effective
• 5% said they find AI or automated tools somewhat effective
• 26% said they were neutral on the effectiveness of the tools
• 34% said they find AI or automated tools somewhat ineffective
• Less than 1% said they find AI or automated tools very ineffective

Recruiters See FTC Ban on Noncompetes as a Step Toward Fairer Hiring Practices
In April, the Federal Trade Commission issued a decision to ban noncompete clauses nationwide. The agency hopes this move will raise worker wages, generate over 8,500 new businesses annually, boost innovation in the form of tens of thousands of new patents each year and lower health care costs.

When asked whether they agreed or disagreed with this ruling, 97% of recruiters said they agree with the decision.

When asked if they think the FTC ban on noncompetes will impact employees, the majority believe the decision will benefit workers.

• 58% say it will benefit employees
• 36% say it will harm employees
• 6% say it will have no impact

When asked whether they believe the FTC ban on non-competes will impact businesses, the majority believe the decision will benefit businesses.

• 59% say it will benefit businesses
• 36% say it will harm businesses
• 4% say it will have no impact

"Overall, the survey uncovered some compelling issues and trends in today's recruiting landscape," said Escalera. "Most notably, the option to work remotely is a tool that is helping recruiters attract a higher quality of candidate and meet their hiring needs. Conversely, we need to reassess the use of ghost jobs as a strategy and weigh the effectiveness and quality of AI recruiting tools before leaning too heavily on their use. "

To view the full report with more information, please visit or contact Elizabeth Buccianti, senior manager, public relations at [email protected].

Methodology
The findings presented were obtained by surveying 753 American respondents who are recruiters or HR professionals involved in hiring. The survey was conducted online on June 4-5, 2024. The study participants were asked questions about their recruiting behaviors. These included yes/no questions, open-ended questions, scale-based questions relating to levels of agreement with a statement, and questions that permitted the selection of multiple options from a list of answers.

About MyPerfectResume
is the leading resource for resume advice and expert customer care to help professionals elevate their career with the perfect resume. Created to take the hassle out of resume-writing, the offers professionally crafted , expert tips, step-by-step guidance, and valuable career advice to effortlessly create an outstanding resume, CV, and cover letter. Since 2013, MyPerfectResume has helped more than 15 million job seekers create their perfect resumes and has been featured in Forbes, Yahoo! Finance, and more. Stay connected with MyPerfectResume's latest updates on , , and .

Media Contact

Elizabeth Buccianti, MyPerfectResume, (407) 463-8865, [email protected], myperfectresume.com

SOURCE MyPerfectResume