Has job-hopping become normal?

Job-hopping has become popular in recent years, with recruiters now seeing an increasingly mobile job-hunting population that is either actively or passively searching for new roles. Of course, as the number of mobile jobseekers grows, those involved in the hiring process will also need to be sure they have the right recruitment software to manage this process effectively.

The prevalence of job-hopping has been recently highlighted in a study by Accountemps. The research found that a total of 42 per cent of US workers who took part in the survey see job-hopping as normal.

For those in the 18-34 age bracket, the number who think job-hopping is a good way to advance a person's career is even higher. In fact, the number of young people who think this is a good move has reached 57 per cent, compared to 43 per cent who feel this was the wrong choice.

The greatest benefits that were cited from job-hopping came from the opportunity to earn a higher wage, according to 31 per cent of respondents. On the other hand, 30 per cent cited the possibility to gain new skills.

While job-hopping has become more commonplace, there are still issues that can arise when an individual changes role frequently. That's the finding from new research by the recruitment firm Robert Half, which found that many business leaders will reject candidates if they perceive the person has moved roles too frequently.

In fact, 93 per cent will remove a candidate from consideration if they perceive them to be a job-hopper, with respondents defining a person who meets this criteria as one who changes job more than four times in a ten-year period.

However, a small number of chief financial officers took this a step further, with 9 per cent feeling that two changes in a 10-year period was a sign of job-hopping.