“One of the clearest indications of a cooling labor market has been the ongoing pullback in job postings from their March 2022 peak. As of November 2024, the Indeed Job Posting Index was down 10% over the year, though still 10% above pre-pandemic levels.” – Indeed’s 2025 US Jobs & Hiring Trends Report
There is good news and bad news in Indeed’s 2025 US Jobs & Hiring Trends Report. Job postings are down, but still above pre-pandemic levels. Job gains are slowing – the economy added an average of 180,000 jobs per month through the first 11 months of 2024 v. 251,000 jobs per month in 2023. However, these gains are still above the 100,000 monthly pace needed to keep up with population growth. Year-over-year wage growth at 3.2% is down from 2021, when it peaked at 9.4%, but it’s still outpacing the rate of inflation.
Why You Should Care About Job Market Trends
Even if your job doesn’t involve tracking the market, you should still care about job market trends because the best career planning is proactive. Understand your environment, anticipate what that means for your next steps and pivot accordingly. If certain industries are growing, you might target those areas and ride the wave. If certain skills are in demand, incorporate these into your learning and development plan. If you have no intention of leaving where you are, the state of the market should influence how aggressively you negotiate your next raise and/or promotion.
3 Key Job Market Trends For 2025
The strongest industries from last year are slowing down. The Indeed report highlighted three industries which combined represented almost 75% of all jobs added in the last 12 months – health care & social assistance, government, and leisure & hospitality. However, leisure & hospitality added fewer jobs on average in 2024 v. 2023. Government hiring may fall based on President-elect Trump’s campaign promises to shrink government. Openings and hiring rates in health care & social assistance have stayed the same year-over-year but are slowing compared to previous years.
Hiring is slowing down in most of the other major industries. As of October 2024, hiring rates were below pre-pandemic levels in nine of the 13 major industries classified by the federal government. Tech and construction had the largest drop in hiring rates, compared to pre-pandemic levels. Quit rates are also falling, which is another negative indicator for job seeker confidence.
Job seeker requirements continue to evolve. Remote work opportunities are declining, though still above pre-pandemic levels. Fewer job postings list years of experience. The share of job postings that require a bachelor’s degree fell (17.6% in October 2024 v. 20% pre-pandemic). Jobs developing or using GenAI tools is growing, though still a small share (about 2 in 1,000 jobs nationwide).
4 Career Moves To Make Now
Improve your job search technique. As hiring slows, the competition for each job increases. Your resume, LinkedIn profile, cover letter and other marketing tools have to stand out. You need to ace your interviews. As employers consider wider ranges of experience and candidates with and without degrees, you need to be prepared for skills-based hiring and have a compelling job portfolio to showcase.
Strengthen your network. Even in a growing market, there is a hidden job market of opportunities that are not posted and only accessible by word-of-mouth (i.e., your network of connections). As job postings decrease, tapping into that hidden job market is even more important, so your network becomes even more important. If you haven’t kept in touch with former colleagues, classmates and old friends, use the holidays and new year greetings to rekindle those relationships.
Strengthen your financial foundation. As wage growth slows and job searches take longer, a strong financial foundation looms large. Money management is career management. Having a solid financial footing gives you a longer runway if you’re in a job search and allows you more choices for what to do next (e.g., pay for more training, invest in your business idea, pivot careers).
Invest in AI. The share of jobs that require AI capability is growing rapidly. Your AI investment could mean enrolling in a course to learn the basics, using it at home to self-study, or finding a way to incorporate AI into your current role. If you don’t see a way of introducing AI into your work, consider investing in AI-related companies. Finally, you can always follow AI developments to grow your knowledge and comfort level until your work evolves to where you can use it there, or your portfolio grows to where you have some money to invest.