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Breaking Job News: ZipRecruiter New Hire Survey Results Are Shocking & Leaders Mishandling Layoffs

• Pete Newsome

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After years of constant churn, job-hopping is slowing down as more workers choose stability over risk. But it’s not just about staying put; employees are demanding more from their companies. Today, benefits matter just as much as pay, with healthcare, flexibility, and work-life balance ranking as top priorities in the fight for talent.

At the same time, corporate missteps are costing companies dearly. Mishandled layoffs are creating a trust crisis, leaving lasting damage to employer reputations and employee morale. And while AI is transforming industries, one thing is clear: human service can’t be fully replaced. From empathy in healthcare to problem-solving in customer support, people still bring the value machines can’t.

In this episode, we explore:
1. How newly-hired employees feel about their jobs.
2. How benefits now rival pay in employee decision-making.
3. Why layoff mismanagement destroys trust inside and outside the company.
4. The limits of AI and why human service will always matter.

News Articles:
1. The ZipRecruiter Survey of New Hires: https://www.ziprecruiter-research.org/new-hires-survey
2. Selerix Publishes Inaugural Employee Benefits Survey, Showcasing the Critical Importance of Benefits Satisfaction: https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/selerix-publishes-inaugural-employee-benefits-survey-showcasing-the-critical-importance-of-benefits-satisfaction-302557597.html
3. The No. 1 Skill Leaders Lack During Layoffs, New Survey Reveals: https://www.forbes.com/sites/carolinecastrillon/2025/09/16/the-no-1-skill-leaders-lack-during-layoffs-new-survey-reveals/
4. Gartner Predicts None of the Fortune 500 Companies Will Have Fully Eliminated Human Customer Service by 2028: https://www.gartner.com/en/newsroom/press-releases/2025-09-10-gartner-predicts-none-of-the-fortune-500-companies-will-have-fully-eliminated-human-customer-service-by-2028

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Pete Newsome:

Today's job market headlines include the likelihood of AI taking over customer service across the Fortune 500, the number one skill leaders lack during layoffs, and why benefits might matter as much as salaries. But first a new survey from ZipRecruiter came out with some interesting results. This is their Q3 survey of new hires. 91% said they are glad they took their current job. That's great, but nearly half of those said they will continue to look for a new opportunity. So 46% who took this survey said, despite being in a brand new role, they're still looking for their next job, and to me that's indicative of the state of things in the job market right now, that people are accepting jobs they otherwise wouldn't because they feel they need to due to a lack of opportunities. Hopefully that number changes and we see people in the near future taking jobs that they actually want to be in and hopefully will stay in for the long term. This survey also found that better pay is the number one reason for switching a job. No surprise there. Second is better management and third is they're looking for less stress. Now there were a few positive trends from this survey. The median number of applications submitted in Q3 went down to 24 from 30 in Q2. So that's training in a really good direction, where people are applying less and getting better results. Also, 49% of the new hires found their job within a month, versus only 40% in Q2. And then, lastly, from the survey, it showed that higher pay equates to better benefits, where the new hires who moved into higher paying jobs were far more likely to report better benefits as well, at a two to one ratio. So that is really significant stat. So congrats to everyone who recently secured a new job.

Pete Newsome:

And speaking of benefits, cellerex just published their inaugural employee benefits survey. 73% of the respondents said benefits matter as much, if not more, than salary, and 38% have turned down a job offer because the benefits package was weak. Benefits is a huge factor in retention. It was also very clear in the survey where employees who are satisfied with their plans are five times more likely to stick with their employer. And what seems to be clear as well is that when benefits feel personal meaning, they're customized for the individual or at least they're explained clearly, satisfaction and confidence skyrocket roughly three times higher when those things are in place. Confidence skyrocket roughly three times higher when those things are in place. Tim Pratt, the CEO of Cellerex, said when employees don't understand their benefits, they feel less supported. This research shows that when benefits feel personal and clear, everything changes. People stick around, trust grows and organizations are stronger.

Pete Newsome:

The bottom line is having a good and maybe even a great benefits package isn't enough. It has to be explained properly to employees. They need to understand it, they need to feel comfortable with it. That seems to make all the difference in satisfaction and retention. I've been on both sides of that equation. I've been an employee who's received a very complex benefits offering and I didn't know how to make heads or tails of it. And then I've been on the side as an employer for the past 20 years where it is super complex to pick the plans to decide which ones are better than others. But it makes complete sense to me. Seeing this survey is that, despite all that, internal communication makes a huge difference. If you're able to answer questions that are asked there's always lots of questions and have the right resources available to do that and to take the time to make sure every employee knows what they're signing up for really is important. So hopefully employers who see this survey take that to heart and do what they can to improve.

Pete Newsome:

And our next headline a new survey of 2,200 employees and HR leaders shows the single biggest leadership shortfall during layoffs is empathy. This is according to a Forbes article published earlier today. It shows that while 77% of HR leaders think they're handling reductions fairly, 60% of employees say leaders lack empathy and 54% don't trust them to handle cuts ethically. That is a big divide. The article describes where leaders go wrong. It comes down to impersonal notifications, lack of transparency about why it's happening, a lack of training for managers and neglecting those who stay behind, who end up with heavier workloads and lower morale. And the fallout is huge 62% of employees lose trust in their employer after layoffs and 71% of survivors immediately start job hunting. The takeaway here is that layoffs are defining moments for companies and their leaders. Empathy requires transparency, dignity and support, which everyone and every organization has the opportunity to provide. But not enough, do I mean? That is very clear. So the message to employers is realize why it's important and then commit to doing the right thing, even during and perhaps especially during difficult times. It'll serve you much better.

Pete Newsome:

And in the final headline today, gartner has recently made two big claims regarding AI replacing jobs. First, they predict that none of the Fortune 500 will have fully eliminated human customer service by 2028. And to me, the devil is in the details with this, with the keyword being fully. No, they won't fully eliminate it. But we just saw what happened with Salesforce right, they laid off 4,000 customer service employees. So while it's not full, it certainly is trending in that direction and I definitely expect that will continue. But they also predicted by 2027, 50% of organizations that expect to significantly reduce their service workforce due to AI will drop these plans.

Pete Newsome:

I think that's a crazy statement. I don't buy it at all and I could not disagree more. Now I really hope I'm wrong about this, but the rapidity and significance of what's coming is undeniable. I just mentioned Salesforce and CEOs of Anthropic. Ford, amazon, fiverr have all predicted significant job displacement, so we know that. It's been reported a lot lately that companies are losing money on their AI investments. Yeah, for now, but this technology is in its infancy and it's evolving and improving on what feels like a daily basis. So while none of us want massive job displacement, we need to assume the worst and prepare for it. It is coming and I'm surprised to see that they suggested otherwise.

Pete Newsome:

We'll see who's right, and the fun fact for today is that many historians believe that ancient hunter-gatherer societies had more leisure time than people in modern industrialized societies. I have trouble believing that. You had to go gather your food. You had to hunt for your food and no technology existed relative to what gather your food. You had to hunt for your food and no technology existed relative to what we have today. And they had more time. Maybe they didn't have all the distractions we have. Maybe the time that they spent was truly more quality. I don't know. I'd like to believe it's true. I struggle to believe it. I picture those ancient folks working 24-7 just to survive. But hey look, maybe the historians know better. So we'll take it as fact, even though I do question it. Thank you for listening today. If you have any feedback, please share. Also, if you could like and subscribe, I would love that too. Greatly appreciate it and I will talk to you soon. Have a good rest of the day.