--- title: Layoffs are out. Labor hoarding is in - The Hustle description: Why some companies are doing the exact opposite of laying off employees. image: https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/418802815-HS-News-Brief_2022-09-07T230134.021Z-1024x683.webp --- # Layoffs are out. Labor hoarding is in ![Mark Dent](https://thehustle.co/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/0-3-1.jpeg?width=48&height=48&name=0-3-1.jpeg) [Mark Dent](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/author/mark-dent) Published: April 11, 2023 Updated: October 11, 2023 When the economy gets shaky, corporations usually take the shortsighted way out, cutting employees to save money. ![Layoffs are out. Labor hoarding is in](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hs-fs/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/418802815-HS-News-Brief_2022-09-07T230134.021Z-1024x683.webp?width=595&height=400&name=418802815-HS-News-Brief_2022-09-07T230134.021Z-1024x683.webp) Except, not right now. Despite [recession warnings](https://www.npr.org/2022/08/12/1116914090/recession-fears-wall-street-downturn-layoffs-economy-jobs-advertising-shopping), economists say many businesses are focused on the opposite of layoffs: labor hoarding. #### **Labor hoarding…** … is when companies hang on to employees during a tough economic period because they believe they’ll save money in the long run, [according to *Inc.*](https://www.inc.com/steven-i-weiss/labor-hoarding.html) - To corporations, layoffs provide a quick high, inflating quarterly profits. But the hangover can be worse. When the economy recovers, companies must spend hefty amounts on recruitment, rehiring, and training. Labor hoarding helps them avoid those costs. After a quick rebound from the March 2020 recession left companies shorthanded, many [are likely reluctant](https://twitter.com/aaronsojourner/status/1541791064448704512) to risk a repeat. #### **But is this just a long tail effect of the ongoing labor shortage?** Maybe. That’s the case against labor hoarding. Some economists [believe](https://www.tker.co/p/labor-hoarding-low-layoffs) companies still don’t have enough employees, which is why they’re not cutting many jobs. Either way, there’s good news we can all celebrate: Layoffs [have been minimal this summer](https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/JTSLDR), hovering at a rate of 0.9% of total employment. That’s roughly the same rate as this time last year and lower than every month of 2019. Topics: [Labor](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/tag/labor) ## Follow us on social media prev next - ![California will teach teens about workers’ rights because employers keep violating them](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/1184674996-httpsthdaily.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.comfinal_size-students_20231009220809.webp) ### California will teach teens about workers’ rights because employers keep violating them - ![‘AI is not a writer:’ Why the writers’ strike deal matters beyond Hollywood](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/2028008005-httpsthdaily.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.comfinal_size-AI-WGA_20230927223315.webp) ### ‘AI is not a writer:’ Why the writers’ strike deal matters beyond Hollywood - ![The Hollywood strike has a lot to do with AI](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/839145910-httpsthdaily.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.comfinal_size-writersstrike_20230716214424.webp) ### The Hollywood strike has a lot to do with AI - ![What is supercore inflation?](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/46898437-HS-News-Brief_2023-03-13T231918.703Z.webp) ### What is supercore inflation? - ![A study found the four-day workweek works](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/2021796566-HS-News-Brief_2023-02-22T001437.266Z.webp) ### A study found the four-day workweek works - ![Why do restaurant workers fund a lobbying group that keeps their wages low?](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/189664282-HS-News-Brief_2023-01-19T011742.482Z.webp) ### Why do restaurant workers fund a lobbying group that keeps their wages low? - ![The end of noncompetes?](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/1539732627-HS-News-Brief_2023-01-06T004837.804Z.webp) ### The end of noncompetes? - ![Tech winter is dire for immigrant visa holders](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/1302623735-HS-News-Brief_2022-12-09T011935.138Z.webp) ### Tech winter is dire for immigrant visa holders - ![Pay transparency is coming](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/1681193210-HS-News-Brief_2022-11-03T001550.120Z.webp) ### Pay transparency is coming - ![More apps, more problems](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/710904728-HS-News-Brief_2022-10-20T003808.051Z.webp) ### More apps, more problems Pop up for Subscribe to The Hustle Daily Newsletter Subscribe to The Hustle Daily Newsletter Get the 5-minute news brief keeping 2.5M+ innovators in the loop. Always free. 100% fresh. No bullsh*t. JOIN FREE ### 100% Free CRM Nurture and grow your business with customer relationship management software. Signup for a free account Close modal ```json { "@context" : "https://schema.org", "@type" : "BlogPosting", "author" : { "@type" : "Person", "name" : "Mark Dent", "url" : "https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/news/author/mark-dent" }, "datePublished" : "2023-04-11T05:30:17.000Z", "headline" : "Layoffs are out. Labor hoarding is in", "image" : [ "https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/418802815-HS-News-Brief_2022-09-07T230134.021Z-1024x683.webp" ], "mainEntityOfPage" : { "@id" : "https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/news/09082022-labor-hoarding", "@type" : "WebPage" }, "publisher" : { "@type" : "Organization", "logo" : { "@type" : "ImageObject" } } } ``` ```json { "@context" : "https://schema.org", "@id" : "#article", "@type" : "NewsArticle", "author" : { "@type" : "Person", "name" : "Mark Dent", "url" : "https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/author/mark-dent" }, "dateModified" : "2023-10-11T19:51:25+0000", "datePublished" : "2023-04-11T05:30:17+0000", "headline" : "Layoffs are out. Labor hoarding is in", "image" : [ "https://7355427.fs1.hubspotusercontent-na1.net/hubfs/7355427/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/418802815-HS-News-Brief_2022-09-07T230134.021Z-1024x683.webp" ], "publisher" : { "@type" : "Organization", "logo" : { "@type" : "ImageObject", "height" : 112, "url" : "https://fs.hubspotusercontent00.net/hubfs/53/assets/hubspot.com/web-team/WBZ/Blog%202021/Images/Logos/HubSpot%20Logo%20112X112.svg", "width" : 112 }, "name" : "HubSpot", "sameAs" : [ "https://www.facebook.com/hubspot", "https://twitter.com/hubspot" ], "url" : "https://www.hubspot.com" }, "speakable" : { "@type" : "SpeakableSpecification", "xPath" : [ "//title", "/html/head/meta[@name='description']/@content" ] } } ```