Companies offer more as unemployment numbers remain low

LAKELAND, Fla. (FOX 13) - Getting a job can be a drawn-out process, however, thanks to low unemployment, job hunters have more cards stacked in their favor.

It all comes down to supply and demand.

“There is a lot of work out there, just not enough people,” Cynthia Rivera told FOX 13.

Rivera represented Badcock Furniture and More at a job fair sponsored by Job News at the R.P. Funding Center in Lakeland, Florida.

The unemployment rate has dropped to a historically low 3.6%.

Since employees are at a premium, companies are sweetening the pot by offering signing bonuses, better benefit packages, and increasing starting salaries.

For example, retail giant Target is promising $13.50 an hour and Amazon says new employees can make $15 an hour. In bigger cities, Facebook plans on paying $20 an hour.

Employers say job hunters are more confident and not afraid to ask what a company is able to bring to the table.

“They’re the ones asking, ‘Do you have a long-term retirement plan? Do you have health insurance?,'” explained Westley Bass, of Florida Pest Control. “You can see the tide has turned a bit.”

It's unclear how long this buyer’s market for job hunters if going to last.

“There is so much going on in the economy right now, at the highest levels, there is so much change going on, you never know,” Mark Nightingale, vice president of Job News, told FOX 13.

For now, Nightingale says, “All I can tell you is: Today, the environment is as good as it has ever been.”

If you want to find an upcoming job fair in your area, visit www.jobnewsUSA.com.