Would you give up part of your salary for the promise of job security?

Don’t bother answering. The question may as well be strictly theoretical because job security may as well be strictly theoretical.

Monster asked it anyway.

The online employment platform’s 2026 State of the Graduate Report shows that new graduates are prioritizing job security in their job search. Findings indicate that 69% are more willing to compromise on their ideal role than they were a year ago, and almost the same number would accept a lower-paying job if it offered greater long-term security.

What’s more, while 68% of recent grads say that salary is their top factor in evaluating offers, job security (52%) now outranks career growth (49%).

The challenge for job-seekers, as well as talent acquisition professionals, is that it is impossible to discuss job security in any meaningful way. It’s not as if it’s a guaranteed benefit like health insurance, PTO, or a 401(k). Yet there also never has been a time that rapidly advancing technology has threatened the job market like today.

‘Stop Hiring Humans’

Before you point your finger at me like I’m Chicken Little ranting in 1820 about job threats related to railroads and other wonders of the Industrial Revolution, I understand that machines have always been coming for — and taking — human jobs. This time, however, is different.

For starters, many leaders of AI companies and ventures are themselves sounding alarms about the future of the job market. Dario Amodei, CEO of AI powerhouse Anthropic, not long ago told Axios that AI could snuff out half of all entry-level white-collar positions and spike unemployment up to 20% in the very near future.

Sure enough, just one year ago Monster found that 64% of graduates worried that AI could replace entry-level roles. Today, that number is 89%. (Um, I’d like a word with the other 11%.)

And by the way, it’s not just recent grads emphasizing job security. Research shows that 62% of people overall prioritize long-term security over higher pay and better benefits.

Here’s more evidence that job-seekers and recruiters should worry: Several days ago at HumanX, a major conference focused on practical applications of AI in business, an ad at the entrance read: “Stop hiring humans.”

Many organizations already have, or at least have cut back on staff — specifically due to AI. For instance, Salesforce eliminated 4,000 customer-support employees, pointing out that AI now handles half of such work. Additionally, Block recently cut its workforce by 40%, from 10,000 to 6,000, not because the company is struggling but because AI has contributed to a strong business, according to founder Jack Dorsey.

Perception Trumps Reality

What might matter most is not whether AI will create a dystopic job market in the future. It is that many job-seekers believe that dystopia is already here. A classic example of perception trumping reality. In the meantime, ADP research shows that only 2 in 10 workers feel confident that their job is safe from elimination. Delusional suckers (my words, not ADP’s).

I have a friend who was recently laid off from a customer-success leadership position. After looking for his next role for almost six months, he’s thisclose to giving up. “Aside from all the competition due to layoffs in my field,” he explains, “customer success is a dying field thanks to AI.” With his finances dwindling, he worries he will soon find himself waiting tables or as a store cashier. (Heads up: The cashier sector is likewise terminally ill.)

The emphasis on job security now even has its own faddish name: job-hugging (I really hate the term!). It’s basically staying in a role not because you want to but because you have to.

Parsing the Paradox

This leads to an interesting paradox: Your company may show great retention rates, which can give job-seekers the impression of job security — but the dark secret underpinning those numbers may be that employees are fearful to leave.

Which brings us back to Monster’s recent survey. It’s one thing for older employees and job-seekers to prioritize job security. But as Monster’s research demonstrates, that feeling has now trickled down to early-career talent.

The tragedy here is also the irony: Individuals just entering the world of work should be excited to grow their new careers. Instead, they are so consumed by panic that they will place a nonexistent benefit like job security near the top of their employment wish list. That is sad.

— Vadim Liberman

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How We’re Teaching Our Recruiting Team to Work With AI (and What We Got Wrong on the Way)

How many times have you listened to some corporate figurehead drone endlessly about how their company deploys AI — only to realize that what the person really talked about was that, not how, the organization uses new tech? Frustrating, right? What makes this article especially useful is that it fills that gap to explain how one business is actually and specifically leveraging AI in recruiting. Perhaps most interesting is how Elena Volk describes the mistakes she made during the adoption process. After all, there’s often just as much to learn from mistakes as from successes. Maybe even more. (ERE)

More Recruiting Insights

Almost all new jobs are going to women. “Of the 369,000 jobs the Labor Department says were created since the start of Trump's second term, nearly all — 348,000 of them — went to women, with only 21,000 going to men,” according to NPR. Much of this has been driven by health care, where women hold roughly 4 out of 5 jobs. As Betsey Stevenson, professor of public policy and economics at the University of Michigan, says in the article: "This is happening at a time where it's become verboten to talk about diversity, equity, and inclusion. And yet the people we need to be talking about right now are men." (NPR)

The labor market is sick with long Covid. Indeed Hiring Lab explains how the pandemic is still impacting the job market. The last three years especially have been the longest stretch of labor-market cooling without a recession on record. “With the Indeed Job Postings Index back near pre-pandemic levels,” according to the story, “the labor market appears to be normalizing, not collapsing. But several dynamics bear close watching with potential trouble on the horizon.” (Indeed Hiring Lab)

The FAA turns to gamers to address labor shortage. With the Federal Aviation Administration struggling to recruit air traffic controllers, the agency is targeting gamers with a new campaign. It hopes that gamers will bring skills transferable to air traffic control, including demonstrated high cognitive functions, multitasking, spatial awareness, and strategy and problem-solving. This week, the agency’s new training program will start accepting applications, which will be capped at 8,000. No college degree is required, but applicants must be no older than 31 (so that they can work for 25 years before mandatory retirement at 56). (FAA)

Smaller businesses are struggling to hire under the new H-1B visa program. Since imposing a $100,000 fee for new H-1B visas, many smaller companies, nonprofits, and rural hospitals are stuck with staffing shortfalls. In trying to hire a doctor from India, an office manager at one North Carolina medical practice reveals that filling “the position with a domestic candidate is not feasible. [Domestic employees] are not interested in coming here. We can’t compete with bigger areas.” (NY Times)

Conferences

ERE Recruiting Innovation Summit

Atlanta, GA
May 5-6, 2026

Real-world challenges will meet real-world solutions at the upcoming ERE Recruiting Innovation Summit. Unlike other conferences that often present nice-sounding theories, RIS 2026 is a practitioner-led event built around actual practices that you’ll be able to apply at your organization. 

The summit is a terrific opportunity to network with many of today’s talent acquisition leaders to explore what works, and what doesn’t, to elevate hiring at your company. No BS, just solid advice from peers who share many of your own frustrations and aspirations. 

Experience the future of talent acquisition next month. We hope to see you there! (ERE Recruiting Innovation Summit)