Preface
This is the second chapter in a three-part series inspired by Hidden Workers: Untapped Talent, a report recently published by Harvard Business School and Accenture. For an introduction and background, visit Chapter 1: An Introduction to the Workmorphis Hidden Worker Series.
Chapter 2 shines a light on hidden workers, an estimated 27 million people in the United States who are looking for jobs but remain “hidden” from companies. So far, we have examined demographic trends that are fueling the war for talent and the workers who remain “hidden” from consideration by employers. Understanding the demographic trends that are fueling workforce issues and learning how to engage hidden workers will allow employers to unleash new potential for growth and innovation.
This chapter provides a summary of further considerations for the hidden worker challenges and causes, and offers recommendations by combining insights from the latest reports and studies. This chapter also includes commentary by the Workmorphis team, whose experience working across sectors to engage and serve populations of hidden workers is extensive.
Table of Contents
Chapter 2 consists of three parts, including:
- The War for Talent
- Who Are “Hidden Workers” and Why Can’t Employers Find Them?
- The Business Case for Hiring Hidden Workers
Use the table of contents above to navigate through the series and learn about the hidden worker phenomenon, causes, and recommendations employers can act upon today.
Before introducing the business case, it is important to acknowledge common beliefs and hesitations many employers share about hiring people who qualify as “hidden workers.”
Employer Beliefs Before Hiring Hidden Workers
The authors of Hidden Workers: Untapped Talent suggest that companies that choose not to hire hidden workers only foresee problems, citing the stats below.
- 40 percent of employers said hiring hidden workers would make them less or significantly less competitive.
- 50 percent believed hiring hidden workers would make them more or significantly more exposed to risk.
- 41 percent were convinced hiring hidden workers would add to a negative financial return for their organization.
Many employers cite concerns about liability, safety, cultural fit, and workplace conduct when considering hiring hidden workers. With the many legal and safety policies employers must follow, it is understandable that employers may hesitate, especially if they believe something in the candidate’s background may increase liability risk or jeopardize profitability.
There are risks associated with hiring any new employee, and for many employers, hiring hidden workers is unfamiliar and may seem daunting or too complicated to consider. Fortunately, there are methods and organizations, such as non-profits, that can help companies overcome these challenges and hire hidden workers with confidence. In Chapter 3, we will introduce some of the methods and organizations employers can leverage to hire hidden workers.
Employer Beliefs After Hiring Hidden Workers
Companies that choose to hire hidden workers recognize the potential risks, but also see the benefits. Nearly two-thirds of all such business leaders reported that, once hired, previously hidden workers performed “better or significantly better” in six key areas that matter most to employers: attitude and work ethic, productivity, quality of work, employee engagement, attendance, and innovation.
Hidden Workers study recommendation: Lay the groundwork with the workforce by addressing myths about hidden workers, telling their stories, involving current workers who will take part in onboarding and training, and enlisting a champion.
Workmorphis’ Recommendation: Providing mentorship opportunities for new and current employees is a great way to encourage relationship building, transfer of knowledge, and a sense of belonging. Additionally, many hidden worker serving organizations offer cultural competency sessions for employers to address cultural knowledge gaps in the workplace and improve retention. Some examples of these include: Welcoming City’s Cultural Competency Sessions and Cincinnati Chamber’s Guide to Disability Inclusion.
Workmorphis offers diversified workforce pipeline strategies to help employers attract professionals from a variety of backgrounds, cultures, and experiences.
Contrary to widespread belief that hiring hidden workers is some form of compromise by the organization, 60 percent of experienced executives shared that hidden workers cost the same or less to hire compared to traditional sources of talent.
The Business Case for Hiring Hidden Workers
Even in the absence of the variety of challenges employers are facing today, there is a strong case for hiring hidden workers. In our current labor market, it is even more crucial.
Hidden Workers: Untapped Talent found that executives from companies that hired hidden workers reported that their organizations are:
- 38 percent less likely to face challenges finding workers with the necessary experience
- 44 percent less likely to face challenges finding workers with the necessary skills
- 36 percent more likely to find candidates who have the right attitude/motivation
- 35 percent less likely to face challenges meeting diversity goals
To further explore the case for hiring hidden workers, let’s consider people returning from prison (“returning citizens”), a population that employers are particularly apprehensive about. Many employers automatically exclude people with a criminal background from consideration for employment, citing concerns about liability, safety, and workplace conduct.
The incarcerated population in the United States is substantial. Presently, 2.3 million people are incarcerated across the U.S., and 95 percent will eventually be released back into their communities. Returning citizens are significant in number, yet they are a relatively untapped source of talent.
Employers who hire returning citizens realize many benefits. Interestingly, turnover rates for employees with criminal records are 12 percent lower on average, reducing turnover costs. Employers repeatedly report that employees with criminal records show higher loyalty and company dedication.
Consider the following quotes from second-chance employers:
“We found that the population we were hiring who had criminal backgrounds were our most loyal people. When we were looking for people to work overtime, come in on Saturday or go that extra mile, it was the second-chance population that was saying, ‘I’m in.’”
– Richard Palmer, President of Nehemiah Manufacturing (Wall Street Journal)
“Our HR strategy has provided us with a highly engaged team that’s consistently more productive and more engaged than what you usually see in the restaurant industry. In regard to key metrics like retention and turnover, we’re outperforming the industry (average) by two-times. My life has been enriched from the education I’ve received and the relationships we’ve built with people who have very different experiences from my own.”
– Joe DeLoss, Hot Chicken Takeover (Food Fanatics Magazine)
“When you give these applicants a chance, they’re incredibly loyal. They want to rebuild themselves. They want the job. They want to be here, and they understand what mistakes look like, much more than, say, college kids, whom we also hire. As a result, we’ve seen lower turnover.I came into this worried that there was a higher risk, compared with the average employee, (for) theft or other things. The reality has been 180 (degrees) from that. We’ve only had one truly bad experience. When you compare that to the rest of our population, that’s a pretty good hit rate.”
– Steve Hooper, Jr., Kigo Asian Kitchen (Food Fanatics Magazine)
Additionally, having a job has been shown to reduce recidivism, the rate at which people are re-arrested. Beyond societal benefits, employers that successfully engage hidden workers realize substantial business benefits as increasing the overall candidate pipeline, reducing skills gaps, decreasing turnover, and improving diversity in the workplace.
Hidden Workers study recommendation: Remediate lingering employment challenges by understanding the skills gaps the focus population(s) may experience, changing the onboarding experience to accommodate newly hired hidden workers, and investing in retraining.
Workmorphis’ Recommendation: Identify existing resources such as publicly funded job training programs your company can tap into to provide ongoing upskilling and reskilling opportunities to current and future employees.
Workmorphis offers workforce skills transformation services to help employers develop their workforce through upskilling and reskilling programs and identify available resources and funds to support.
Hiring hidden workers, including returning citizens, is not charity or corporate social responsibility. It is good business strategy.
Hidden Workers study recommendation: Target segments of hidden workers to hire to maximize potential based on hiring needs and focus on meeting the specific needs of a particular segment(s) of workers.
Workmorphis’ Recommendation: Review the requirements of open positions and consider which populations may be a good fit. For example, military veterans may have security clearance and immigrants or refugees may be multilingual.
Workmorphis provides community partnership services to help employers build long-term relationships that will produce a pipeline of job-ready candidates.
Unleash Your Potential for Growth
By implementing the recommendations included throughout this series with an open mind and a making a commitment to learning, employers can successfully engage untapped talent and unleash potential for growth and innovation.
Getting started may feel daunting, however, there are many resources and partners within the community that can help.
For example, companies can offer reskilling opportunities to hidden workers through funding and programs offered by American Job Centers and innovative public-private partnerships that provide new skills to hidden workers such as the Ohio to Work initiative. Many states offer programs and funding to help, such as Re-Employing Virginians (REV), Ohio’s TechCred and Individual Microcredential Assistance Program, and the Arkansas Ready for Life initiative.
Additionally, there are many organizations whose mission includes serving hidden workers, and many of them work with employers to match candidates to job opportunities.
Hidden Workers study recommendation: Cultivate relationships with community partners such as not-for-profits, social entrepreneurs, other employers, governments, and others who can help and reduce barriers to engaging specific populations of hidden workers.
Workmorphis’ Recommendation: Consider building upon your organization’s existing community partnerships to develop a long-term talent pipeline by targeting segments of hidden workers.
Workmorphis provides workforce planning and pipeline strategies to help companies forecast and proactively meet hiring needs, community partnership services to source talent, and employee support services to address barriers to success at work
Next, we are excited to bring you Chapter 3, which includes a series of guest posts intended to help employers learn how to engage specific segments of hidden workers with expertise from our partners who serve and employ them. Readers will learn about these organizations’ first-hand experiences with hidden workers, the value of hiring them, and actions employers can take to get started.
About Workmorphis
Workmorphis provides a full suite of services to help organizations across the U.S. revitalize their workforce, including workforce planning strategies, skills transformation, diversified workforce pipeline strategies, employee support and empowerment, and more.
Connect with us to offer your insights or learn how we can help you transform your workforce.
Meet the Author
Emily Fabiano is the founder of Workmorphis, a cross-sector workforce consultancy helping organizations build a more resilient workforce to thrive in a changing economy. Fabiano has deep experience in workforce transformation at the government level, working at the cross section of workforce strategy, economic development, and public policy. With a keen understanding of the unique challenges facing today’s and tomorrow’s workforce and the ability to communicate across sectors, Fabiano brings a new level of understanding and collaboration required to address the necessary changes to better connect industry and education to prepare people for jobs.
