Now Hiring: High-Tech Logistics A Bright Spot in Tough Job Market
Last year, the U.S. employment rate took a major turn from a record high in February (61.1% of the total population employed) to a record low in April (51.3%). In other words, 16% of America’s employees lost their jobs in just two months.
While the employment outlook has improved significantly since April, a third of the jobs lost have not yet come back. And even that number does not do justice to the difficulties faced by recent grads and other young professionals entering the jobs market. Not surprisingly, unemployment among America’s youngest workers hovers above 11%, a rate that in normal times would be considered dire.
However, two industries, logistics, and tech have proved remarkably resilient in the face of the global economic downturn, and prospects for 2021 are looking even brighter.
The Remarkable Resilience of Global Trade and Tech
Yes, COVID disrupted world merchandise trade dramatically, with a 9% drop in 2020. However, the WTO forecasts a 7.2% growth in 2021, which will bring world merchandise trade within a few percent of 2019’s stellar levels — far better than economists were predicting just a few months ago.
This rapid recovery looks remarkably similar to what happened after the 2008–2009 financial crisis. By 2010, merchandise trade had returned to pre-crisis levels — a testament to the underlying strength of global trade. The December 2020 employment numbers are already bearing this trend, with transportation and warehousing adding almost 50,000 jobs in just one month, reports the US Bureau of Labor Statistics.
In a very difficult year, the tech sector fared even better.
At the end of 2020, there were almost as many people employed in tech jobs (4.68 million) as the year before (4.73 million), according to ComputerWorld. Salaries have held steady, and more than two thirds (68%) of the top 50 technology employers have accelerated hiring in the recent quarters.
Tech + Logistics = Job Growth
So what happens when you combine the underlying strengths of these two industries? An informal survey of hiring at digital-first and other high-tech logistics firms finds plenty of good news for young professionals. Hiring trends look strong.
Whether you are looking for work or just want to take the pulse of this growing sector, check out the jobs pages of some of the leading high-tech logistics companies below. All are hiring — some of them aggressively.
