Occupation Profile for Employment, Recruitment, and Placement Specialists

Recruit and place workers.

Signficant Points

• The educational backgrounds of these workers vary considerably, reflecting the diversity of duties and levels of responsibility.
• Certification and previous experience are assets for most specialties, and are essential for more advanced positions, including managers, arbitrators, and mediators.
• College graduates who have earned certification should have the best job opportunities.

Earnings

Annual salary rates for human resources workers vary according to occupation, level of experience, training, location, and firm size.

Median annual earnings of compensation and benefits managers were $74,750 in May 2006. The middle 50 percent earned between $55,370 and $99,690. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $42,750, and the highest 10 percent earned more than $132,820. In 2006, median annual earnings were $85,330 in the management of companies and enterprises industry.

Median annual earnings of training and development managers were $80,250 in May 2006. The middle 50 percent earned between $58,770 and $107,450. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $43,530, and the highest 10 percent earned more than $141,140.

Median annual earnings of human resources managers, all other were $88,510 in May 2006. The middle 50 percent earned between $67,710 and $114,860. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $51,810, and the highest 10 percent earned more than $145,600. In May 2006, median annual earnings were $98,400 in the management of companies and enterprises industry.

Median annual earnings of employment, recruitment, and placement specialists were $42,420 in May 2006. The middle 50 percent earned between $32,770 and $58,320. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $26,590, and the highest 10 percent earned more than $81,680. Median annual earnings in the industries employing the largest numbers of employment, recruitment, and placement specialists were:

Median annual earnings of compensation, benefits, and job analysis specialists were $50,230 in May 2006. The middle 50 percent earned between $39,400 and $63,800. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $32,180, and the highest 10 percent earned more than $80,150. Median annual earnings in the industries employing the largest numbers of compensation, benefits, and job analysis specialists were:

Median annual earnings of training and development specialists were $47,830 in May 2006. The middle 50 percent earned between $35,980 and $63,200. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $27,450, and the highest 10 percent earned more than $80,630. Median annual earnings in the industries employing the largest numbers of training and development specialists were:

The average salary for human resources managers employed by the Federal Government was $76,503 in 2007; for labor-management relations examiners, $94,927; and for manpower development specialists, $86,071. Salaries were slightly higher in areas where the prevailing local pay level was higher. There are no formal entry-level requirements for managerial positions. Applicants must possess a suitable combination of educational attainment, experience, and record of accomplishment.

According to a July 2007 salary survey conducted by the National Association of Colleges and Employers, bachelor’s degree candidates majoring in human resources, including labor and industrial relations, received starting offers averaging $41,680 a year.

Job Outlook

Employment of human resources, training, and labor relations managers and specialists is expected to grow faster than the average for all occupations. College graduates who have earned certification should have the best job opportunities.

Employment change. Overall employment is projected to grow by 17 percent between 2006 and 2016, faster than the average for all occupations. Legislation and court rulings setting standards in various areas—occupational safety and health, equal employment opportunity, wages, health care, pensions, and family leave, among others—will increase demand for human resources, training, and labor relations experts. Rising health care costs should continue to spur demand for specialists to develop creative compensation and benefits packages that firms can offer prospective employees.

Employment of labor relations staff, including arbitrators and mediators, should grow as firms become more involved in labor relations and attempt to resolve potentially costly labor-management disputes out of court. Additional job growth may stem from increasing demand for specialists in international human resources management and human resources information systems.

Job growth could be limited by the widespread use of computerized human resources information systems that make workers more productive. Like other workers, employment of human resources, training, and labor relations managers and specialists, particularly in larger firms, may be adversely affected by corporate downsizing, restructuring, and mergers and acquisitions.

Demand may be particularly strong for certain specialists. For example, employers are expected to devote greater resources to job-specific training programs in response to the increasing complexity of many jobs and technological advances that can leave employees with obsolete skills. Additionally, as highly trained and skilled baby boomers retire, there should be strong demand for training and development specialists to impart needed skills to their replacements. In addition, increasing efforts throughout industry to recruit and retain quality employees should create many jobs for employment, recruitment, and placement specialists.

Among industries, firms involved in management, consulting, and employment services should offer many job opportunities, as businesses increasingly contract out human resources functions or hire human resources specialists on a temporary basis in order to deal with the increasing cost and complexity of training and development programs. Demand for specialists also should increase in outsourcing firms that develop and administer complex employee benefits and compensation packages for other organizations.

Job prospects. College graduates who have earned certification should have the best job opportunities. Graduates with a bachelor’s degree in human resources, human resources administration, or industrial and labor relations should be in demand; those with a technical or business background or a well-rounded liberal arts education also should find opportunities. Demand for human resources, training, and labor relations managers and specialists is governed by the staffing needs of the firms for which they work. A rapidly expanding business is likely to hire additional human resources workers—either as permanent employees or consultants—while a business that has experienced a merger or a reduction in its workforce will require fewer of these workers. Also, as human resources management becomes increasingly important to the success of an organization, some small and medium-size businesses that do not have a human resources department may assign employees various human resources duties together with other unrelated responsibilities.

In addition to human resources management and specialist jobs created over the 2006-2016 projection period, many job openings will arise from the need to replace workers who transfer to other occupations, retire, or leave the labor force for other reasons.

Employment

Human resources, training, and labor relations managers and specialists held about 868,000 jobs in 2006. The following tabulation shows the distribution of jobs by occupational specialty:

Human resources, training, and labor relations managers and specialists were employed in virtually every industry. About 17,000 managers and specialists were self-employed, working as consultants to public and private employers.

The private sector accounted for nearly 9 out of 10 jobs, including 13 percent in administrative and support services; 10 percent in professional, scientific, and technical services; 9 percent in health care and social assistance; 9 percent in finance and insurance firms; and 7 percent in manufacturing.

Government employed 13 percent of human resources managers and specialists. They handled the recruitment, interviewing, job classification, training, salary administration, benefits, employee relations, and other matters related to the Nation’s public employees.