The Demand Side of Hiring: Employers in the Labor Market

Abstract

Sociological research on labor markets has focused most of its attention on the supply side of the labor market, that is, the characteristics of job seekers and job incumbents. Despite its pivotal and we believe primary role in labor market processes, the demand side, in particular the hiring decisions made by employers, has received less attention. The employment relationship, however, comprises both the demand and supply sides, as well as the matching processes that bring these together. We consider the sociology of the demand side by considering three sources of information (human, social, and cultural capital) that employers charged with making hiring decisions seek out, as well as the mechanisms associated with each source. We conceptualize employers as active agents whose hiring behavior is both constrained and enabled by larger social, organizational, and institutional contexts. We call for a program of research that will lead to a fuller empirical and theoretical understanding of employer hiring behavior and its place in the stratifying of labor markets.

College as equalizer? Testing the selectivity hypothesis

“…However, while the pattern reported by Hout (1988) is found in other post-industrial countries (Breen 2010;Breen and Jonsson 2007;Erikson and Jonsson 1998;Vallet 2004), research on the demand side of hiring does not provide unequivocal evidence in favor of this explanation. In their review of this topic, Bills, Di Stasio, and Gërxhani (2017) conclude that "educational credentials are surprisingly often not the linchpin of labor market success." They cite studies showing how non-meritocratic characteristics, including cues of class advantage, affect who gets hired among the highly educated (e.g., Jackson 2007Jackson , 2009Petersen, Saporta, and Seidel 2000;Rivera 2011Rivera , 2012; Rivera and Tilcsik 2016).…”

decision-making process inherent with hiring career counselors who advise international students

“…The current study supports the conclusion drawn by Bills et al, (2017) that "studying hiring behavior is difficult" due to lack of research focused on the practitioners' experience (p. 304). Another perspective from Mueller and Baum (2011) asserts managers, "like crime scene investigators… must carefully find evidence of character, credibility and contribution" from candidates (p. 141).…”

“…They express concern that the influences in hiring decisions made by employers has received less attention (Bills et al, 2017;Huffcutt 2011;Stainback, Tomaskovic-Devey, & Skaggs 2010). Bills et al, (2017) offer that the behaviors of hiring managers are influenced by internal environmental conditions while most research focuses on external factors with "larger social, organizational, and institutional contexts," and urges scholars to conduct research to present "a fuller empirical and theoretical understanding of employer hiring behavior," (p. 291).…”

The Experimental Approach to Studying Employers' Hiring Behavior

“…Fortunately, this has started to change. Bills, Di Stasio, and Gërxhani (2017) provide a recent and extensive overview of the literature focusing on the demand side of the hiring process. Studies have by and large been based on observational field and survey data, but recently a few studies have started to appear that use (quasi)experimental data.…”

“…Finally, depending on the type of experiment conducted-see below-experimentation provides a relatively low-cost tool (compared to observational studies) to better understand employers' hiring behavior. As Bills et al (2017) argue, this understanding is important because employers play a major role in determining opportunities and (in)equalities in the labor market.…”