Survey Reveals Major Differences Between Unemployed In U.S. And Canada

Survey Reveals Major Differences Between Unemployed In U.S. And Canada 

Unemployed Canadians Get More Interviews, Turn Down More Jobs

Americans More Likely Than Canadians to Give Up Looking For Work
According to a Harris Poll of the Unemployed

OKLAHOMA CITY, June 11, 2014 - Express Employment Professionals, the nation's largest franchised staffing firm, today released a comparison of the results of the "State of the Unemployed" surveys taken in the U.S. and Canada.

The exhaustive surveys were fielded online by Harris Poll on behalf of Express Employment Professionals from April 9 through April 21, 2014 among 1,500 unemployed adult Americans and 1,502 unemployed adult Canadians age 18 or older.

America's unemployed are more likely to give up, less likely to be on employment compensation and less likely to go back to school.

• In the U.S., 47 percent of the unemployed agree that they have given up looking for work; 39 percent in Canada report the same.
• In the U.S., 46 percent report no job interviews in the previous month; 36 percent say the same in Canada.
• In the U.S., 19 percent have turned down a job offer; in Canada 24 percent have done so.
• In the U.S., 13 percent are either currently enrolled in classes or have taken classes, compared to 23 percent in Canada.
• In the U.S., 20 percent are receiving unemployment compensation, compared to 29 percent in Canada.

America's unemployed are more likely to accept any job.

• In the U.S., 66 percent say they are willing to accept almost any job that will help pay the bills; 34 percent say they will only accept a job that they really want to do. In Canada, 61 percent say they are willing to accept almost any job; 39 percent say they will only accept one they really want to do.
• In the U.S., 36 percent of the unemployed spent five or fewer hours a week looking for work, compared to 32 percent in Canada.

Canadians are getting more interviews and turning down more offers.

• In the U.S., 73 percent report two or fewer interviews in the prior month. Among those unemployed for more than two years, 71 percent report no interviews in the prior month.
• In Canada, 66 percent report two or fewer interviews in the prior month. Among those unemployed for more than two years, 61 percent report no interviews the prior month.
• In the U.S., 26 percent say they are receiving income from doing various odd jobs. 18 percent of unemployed Canadians say the same.

Canadians are much more likely to say unemployment compensation means they don't have to look for work as hard.

• Among those receiving unemployment benefits, 48 percent in the U.S. agree they haven't had to look for work as hard knowing they have some income to rely on, while 56 percent in Canada say the same.
• Among those receiving unemployment benefits, 62 percent in the U.S. and 74 percent in Canada agree it has let them take time for themselves.
• Among those receiving unemployment benefits, 82 percent in the U.S. say they would search harder and wider for a job if their unemployment compensation runs out before they find work; 87 percent in Canada say the same.

"With offices in both the U.S. and Canada, Express knows that while the two countries share a border, they don't share the same job market - even in this era of globalization," said Bob Funk, CEO of Express, and a former chairman of the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City. "Indeed, the unemployment situation in the U.S. and Canada has some sharp differences. Overall, Canadians seem more resistant to giving up - but also choosier when deciding whether to take a job. The job market right now is stronger in Canada than in the United States."

Read the full U.S. report .

Read the full Canada report .

Survey Methodology
This study was conducted by Harris Poll on behalf of Express Employment Professionals and included 1,500 U.S. adults and 1,502 Canadian adults aged 18 or older who are unemployed but capable of working (whether or not they receive unemployment compensation benefits) who participated in an online survey between April 9 and April 21, 2014. The survey fielded in Canada during the same dates has 1,502 respondents. Results were weighted as needed for age by gender, education, race/ethnicity, region and household income. Propensity score weighting was also used to adjust for respondents' propensity to be online. Totals may not equal the sum of their individual components due to rounding. No estimates of theoretical sampling error can be calculated; a full methodology is available.

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If you would like to arrange for an interview with Bob Funk to discuss this topic, please contact Sherry Kast at (405) 717-5966.

About Robert A. Funk
Robert A. "Bob" Funk is chairman and chief executive officer of Express Employment Professionals. Headquartered in Oklahoma City, the international staffing company has 700 franchises in the U.S., Canada and South Africa. Under his leadership, Express has put more than five million people to work worldwide. Funk served as the Chairman of the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City and was also the Chairman of the Conference of Chairmen of the Federal Reserve.

About Express Employment Professionals
Express Employment Professionals puts people to work. It generated more than $2.5 billion in temporary sales and employed nearly 400,000 people in 2013, and ranks as the largest franchised staffing company and second largest privately held staffing company in the United States. Its long-term goal is to put a million people to work annually.