2022 has come and gone, and so have the top workforce trends that were predicted to take off this year. We made strides this year in shaping the modern workplace, but what were the top workforce trends? Here we’ll review five of the key trends from this past year and how they have helped to shape the Future of Work.
Workforce Trend 1: The Gig Economy
It’s hard to call this just a “trend” because the gig economy has been changing work as we know it for several years now. According to the New York Times, the growth of the gig economy continued in 2022, with many people choosing to freelance instead of and in addition to working full-time jobs.
2022’s Gig Economy Market research report lists Upwork, Fiverr, Uber, Airbnb, and Etsy as major key players shaping the gig economy. It also lists the major market segmentations of gig economy applications as traffic, electronic, accommodation, food and beverage, tourism, education, and other.
Workforce Trend 2: The Great Resignation
Last year we predicted that the Great Resignation (the mass exodus of employees from their jobs) would be a big challenge for HR leaders in 2022. Indeed, Fortune shared halfway through the year that the “Great Resignation shows no signs of slowing down: 40% of U.S. workers are considering quitting their jobs”.
In November of 2022, the Washington Post shared the stories of eight Americans who quit their jobs in the Great Resignation. They share where they’re at now, and “they spoke about liberation and autonomy, of self-sacrifice and caretaking, and of their bounty of house cats.”
Workforce Trend 3: Globalization of the Workforce
As the gig economy continues to grow, so does globalization. Recent talk of a recession in 2023 is causing many companies to spend more efficiently. However, as companies look for ways to cut costs by outsourcing certain tasks overseas or hiring freelancers from around the world without legal protections, they may find themselves violating state and federal employment discrimination laws.
As more companies expand globally, it will create more opportunities for cross-border collaboration. Companies can benefit from having access to a larger talent pool and the ability to tap into different cultures, which can help contribute to workplace innovation. Additionally, countries may be able to learn from each other’s best practices and create international standards that could benefit all. That sounds like a brighter Future of Work to us.
Workforce Trend 4: Remote Work and Hybrid Work
Remote work became increasingly popular, according to Owl Labs’ State of Remote Work 2022.
In fact, they report that: “The number of workers choosing to work remotely in 2022 increased 24% since 2021. And those choosing hybrid work went up 16%. Interest for in-office work, however, dropped by 24%.”
With more businesses allowing employees to work from home, the battle for talent has also shifted. Companies are now competing with one another to attract remote workers by offering perks such as work from anywhere policies and hybrid or flexible work schedules.
Workforce Trend 5: Artificial Intelligence
As talent management has shifted away from traditional HR models towards more holistic approaches, AI has become a pivotal tool for many companies in 2022. AI-driven tools such as GreenLight, the world’s first AI-driven classification engine, have been saving HR leaders tremendous amounts of time while minimizing compliance risks. Our system uses all of the data and industry knowledge at our disposal in order to classify workers with an exceptionally high confidence interval while making benefits like background checks and worker’s comp easily accessible.
GreenLight is the workforce management solution of the future for executives today. If you’re looking for a workforce management solution that is easy to use and integrates with your existing tools, then GreenLight is the perfect solution for you. Our team of experts are available to answer any questions you may have, and we would be happy to schedule a demo of our platform so that you can see how it can help streamline your HR tasks in 2023 and beyond.
