Kickstart: Job seekers still have the upper hand

The Great Resignation trend of 2021 hasn't exactly ended, but with current fiscal conditions trending toward the pessimistic, it has slowed slightly.

"With the 'Big Quit' or 'Great Resignation,' it's still a challenge to find people willing to work for low paying hourly jobs. However, I do see improvement ... even within the current economic uncertainty," Todd Nickerson, recruiting director with MBS Advisors, told PN's Frank Esposito.

And with fears of recession rising, the website Joblist says in a blog post that a recent survey shows that 60 percent of job seekers feel some urgency to find and settle into a new job soon.

Of the nearly 48 million Americans who quit their jobs in 2021, 26 percent said they regret that decision. Of course that means the vast majority are still glad they left their previous job, so don't celebrate by claiming "I told you so" to employees you lost quite yet.

Almost a quarter of Great Resignation participants, 23 percent, said their former bosses reached out to them to invite them to return, Joblist said. But a majority, 59 percent, said they would turn down that offer.

Don't assume that the recession fears will mean you can hire on workers for less money. Joblist notes that inflation is leading to potential employees seeking more money, while high gas prices are prompting workers to seek jobs that offer a shorter commute and the ability to work at home.

"Job seekers have more power and can be more selective as they may have multiple opportunities simultaneously under consideration," Nickerson said. "Filling positions becomes more about the candidate choosing the employer rather than the employer choosing the candidate."

Auto supplier Gentex Corp. will be looking to fill 500 jobs as it launches a $300 million expansion in Zeeland, Mich.

The maker of automatic dimming mirrors, backup cameras and sensors for cars and trucks doesn't do much in-house plastics processing, but it does work with outside suppliers who make housings for mirrors, displays and wearable products.

The company employs 5,000 and is based in a town with only 5,700 residents, with an average wage of $1,100 per week, plus benefits, our sister paper Crain's Detroit Business writes.

During the past 10 years, Gentex moved manufacturing out of low-wage facilities in Mexico and China in favor of making parts at home, a move made possible by big investments in automated production, our sister paper Automotive News noted back in 2017.

There are a lot of global companies involved in turning waste plastics back into commercial items.

A Pennsylvania college's take on recycling isn't as polished or as high profile, but it is still making a splash.

Waynesburg University's Entrepreneurial Leadership Program recently won the Rising Star Award at the Deshpande Symposium in Cleveland. The program is officially called Plastics to Progress, but students at the Waynesburg, Pa., school refer to it as "Wacky Plastics."

Students in the entrepreneurship program use free items otherwise likely to end up in the trash. Past winning items in the Something From Nothing Innovation Challenge have included coasters made by melting down mixed shredded plastics on a panini press, plastic bags heated on an iron to be turned into a reusable shopping bag and a cat shelter made from water bottles and takeout containers.