Washington (AFP)

Retail, transport, manufacturing, early childhood, ... Employers in many sectors are still struggling to recruit, especially for jobs at the bottom of the salary scale.

This "reflects the aging of the workforce, changes in the types of jobs people want to fill and the time needed to train workers," one of the governors of the US Central Bank said on Wednesday (Fed ), Randal Quarles.

"The difficulties of childcare and compulsory vaccination have been widely cited among the causes of the problem, as well as the absences linked to the Covid", explained the Fed Wednesday, in its Beige Book, a survey carried out among the companies of the country.

Despite the reopening of schools, in fact, it is now the places in nurseries that are lacking.

These establishments, most often private and expensive in the United States, are now struggling to recruit staff, and have to reduce their capacity and increase prices.

Fears of contracting Covid remain strong for part of the population.

And vaccine obligations may curb the most reluctant, although the number of resignations related to the requirements has been lower than expected, according to companies surveyed in the Minneapolis area.

"Other offer in hand"

Result: the expiration, on September 6, of the more generous unemployment benefits that had been distributed since the start of the pandemic was not accompanied by the rush for employment that was expected, noted many business leaders.

Three million workers are missing to return to the pre-crisis workforce level, according to data from the Department of Labor.

Joe Biden at the White House on October 8, 2021 Olivier DOULIERY AFP

And it is "unlikely", according to Randal Quarles, that the participation in the labor market, of 61.6% in September, will return to its level of 63.4% in February 2020, before the pandemic puts the bell on the air. economic activity.

Business executives in the Philadelphia area even believe that "operational changes and automation will allow their businesses to operate with fewer workers," says the Beige Book.

A New York City-based recruiting agency, however, said it expects hiring, so far "moderate", to increase as more people return to the office.

For the moment, "many candidates arrive for the interview with another offer in hand," further details the Fed.

And thus raise the stakes.

Salary, hiring bonus, health insurance, working conditions, ... everything goes.

Wages on the rise

CVS pharmacies, Target stores, Chipotle restaurants, or giant Amazon, among others, have now crossed the average $ 15 an hour mark on hire, more than double the minimum federal salary of 7.25. dollars.

And the United States is almost, in fact, at the federal minimum wage that Joe Biden wanted to pass, before giving up in the face of fierce opposition in the Senate.

US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said on Wednesday the improvement was "a good thing for workers."

She notably cited employees in the service sector who "suffered from chronically low wages, poor working conditions and social benefits".

The average hourly wage, all categories of workers combined, rose from $ 28.52 in February 2020 to $ 30.85 in September 2021, according to the Department of Labor.

A demonstration for a minimum wage of 15 dollars an hour, in front of the Capitol in Washington on March 8, 2021 ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS AFP

But for companies, large or small, that fail to attract enough candidates, the business is sluggish.

"Many companies in the distribution, hospitality and manufacturing sectors have reduced their hours or their production because they did not have enough workers", further details the "Beige book".

And in the end, it is growth which suffers, with a rate which "slowed down" at the beginning of the autumn, "penalized" by this lack of personnel, to which were added the global supply difficulties and related fears. to the Delta variant.

© 2021 AFP