LinkUp's August Job Market Insights
Chris Russell kicks off the episode by discussing the latest job market numbers from LinkUp for August 2026. Job openings remained relatively stable, with active job listings seeing a minor increase of 0.1% to 4.96 million from July's 4.95 million. This suggests a steady labor demand in the U.S., despite seasonal recruitment adjustments. Some industries like wholesale trade, construction, and real estate experienced growth in job postings, whereas retail trade witnessed a significant decline of 4.8%. Notably, office and administrative support occupations faced the largest drop, losing almost 10,000 jobs. > Job openings stay flat. Active job listings rose 0.1% in August to 4.96 million from 4.95 million in July. — Chris Russell
UKG's AI-Driven Workforce Innovations
UKG has rolled out several AI-driven features aimed at enhancing workforce management. One of the standout updates is UKG Bright Voice, a voice-enabled assistant that integrates with UKG Pro. This feature allows desk-less employees, such as those in retail and healthcare, to perform routine tasks hands-free using Siri or Google Assistant. > Key among these updates is UKG Bright Voice, a voice-enabled assistant integrated with UKG Pro that allows desk-less staff, such as retail and healthcare workers, to execute routine tasks like checking schedules, reading time cards, or updating direct deposit information, hands-free via Siri or Google Assistant. — Chris Russell Additionally, UKG has introduced AI-assisted high-volume hiring tools that streamline the recruitment process by offering candidate job recommendations and profile summaries while processing up to 100 applicants simultaneously. Another significant addition is Agentic Pay, which enables administrators to use natural language queries to examine historical pay data and address discrepancies before payroll processing. > Finally, UKG rolled out Agentic Pay, which allows administrators to examine historical pay data and resolve discrepancies before processing payroll through natural language queries to eliminate costly errors. — Chris Russell
Hackajob's Transformation to Archer
In a significant rebranding move, Hackajob has announced that it will now operate under the name Archer. Mark Chaffee, CEO of the company, shared this update on LinkedIn, highlighting that the rebranding aligns with their core product. > Over a decade of building technology focused on giving candidates a great experience and helping companies find the talent they need has led us here, he says. The new brand, Archer, is focused on providing an at-scale AI agent for both sides of the hiring process, emphasizing their ongoing commitment to enhancing candidate experiences and aiding companies in finding the right talent. The new brand can be explored further at meetarcher.com. > Archer is the most at-scale AI agent for both sides of hiring, and we're only just getting started.
