Housing Costs Cause Problems for Job Candidates and Employers in Arizona

Scottsdale, AZ (PRWeb) January 23, 2007 -- New data released by Phoenix-based Tower Hunter, retained search consultants, and Scottsdale-based WageWatch, Inc., the leading online compensation and benefits survey company, indicates that the recent rise in housing prices may make Arizona employers less able to attract their first choice job candidates. Some of the survey's significant findings are:

•    74 percent of the survey's respondents reported difficulty in recruiting mid-management candidates to Arizona. 60 percent reported difficulty relocating upper management.

•    Three quarters of participants reported experienced candidates withdrawing from the recruitment process prior to formal offer. The biggest reason they withdrew was that the expected salary offer was too low, followed by a counter offer from their current employers, personal and family reasons, and the cost of Arizona housing.

•    One half of respondents reported the likelihood that they would not succeed in hiring their first choice candidates for upper management positions, while one third said they will not succeed in recruiting mid-management first choice candidates.

"Arizona is still a very attractive location with high caliber organizations, but the state's businesses need to get better results in obtaining its first choice candidates," says Terry Hindmarch, Tower Hunter Managing Partner. "The cost of housing is a new issue and does have an impact, especially for mid-management candidates coming from areas with more affordable housing."

How to fight this trend? "Show off your corporate culture, and ensure your compensation packages are reasonable compared to the current labor market," says Margaret Dyekman, president and COO of WageWatch. "And retain your key employees, because they are your best recruiting tool."

For additional information, contact Jim Crews, 480-657-6504 or Terry Hindmarch, 602-354-3626.

ABOUT WAGE WATCH
Wagewatch (www.wagewatch.com), the leading Web-based source for compensation and benefits data, provides instantly accessible industry wage, salary and benefits data, delivered to any Internet-enabled device. Using a patent-pending technology, WageWatch surveys industries and provides companies with the data they need to make their compensation and benefits decisions. As a pure information provider, WageWatch gives its customers the ability to see what their competitors are paying and position themselves in their markets.

ABOUT TOWERHUNTER
TowerHunter (www.towehunter.com) is a national, retained-search firm that partners with clients to fill critical leadership positions. Its clients are engaged in a variety of businesses across several industries and include publicly traded, privately owned, for-profit and not-for-profit organizations.

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