US Pharma Hiring

A new US report has given an insight into employment in the life sciences sector there.

The CBRE 2021 report — ‘Life Science’s Research Talent 2022’ — shows that pharma hiring continues to grow in the US but that talent competition remains tight.

It shows that the sector has grown by 79% between 2021 and 2022 compared with only 8% growth for all other occupations in the US. The number of graduates in biological and biomedical sciences has doubled in 15 years. However, finding research talent is proving difficult, something that’s been attributed to the fact that the science sectors have the second lowest unemployment rate of all US occupations.

The report observes that the life sciences industry has risen to a new level of prominence — the COVID-19 pandemic and rapid advances in technology being contributing factors. However, it also concludes that demographic changes, pandemic burnout and shifting family responsibilities present challenges to the industry as it looks to meet the growing demand for products and services.

According to CBRE, most of the jobs in the life sciences sector since 2020 are roles such as sales, accounting and wider admin rather than research functions. Major metro areas such as Boston and the San Francisco Bay Area, with their high levels of talent and concentration in life sciences, are among the most favourable areas in the US for those seeking employment in the sector with plenty of new, potential areas coming to the fore including Chicago, Boston, Nashville, Albuquerque, Atlanta and Orlando.