ASCP Wage and Vacancy Report Shows Labs Experiencing Hiring Difficulties

CHICAGO – March 3, 2009 – Half of all laboratories nationwide struggle to hire laboratory personnel. Increased competition for qualified staff and lower compensation for laboratory work were cited as major issues among others.

Published in the March 2009 issue of LabMedicine, the American Society for Clinical Pathology’s (ASCP) Wage & Vacancy survey provides current wage data and information about the distribution of personnel within the nation’s clinical laboratory workforce and is conducted every two years. The Society first started tracking this data in 1988 and is the primary source of information for academic, governmental, and industry labor analysts in defining the state of the nation’s clinical laboratory workforce.

Sixty-three percent of clinical laboratories report increased competition for qualified staff as a stumbling block to hiring new personnel. Thirty-three percent report low compensation as a problem and 28 percent say that applicants are unwilling to relocate. According to the survey, medical technologists (MT) at the staff level are the most difficult to replace (63 percent) followed by medical laboratory technicians (MLT) at 38 percent.

MTs have the highest vacancy rate at 10.4 percent, highest in the East North Central and Far West. Laboratory assistants (LA) also reported high vacancy at 8.8 percent with the largest holes in high-volume testing labs (26.3 percent). Histotechnicians (HT) also rated among the highest in vacancies at 8 percent. The survey showed MLTs with a 6.4 percent vacancy rate, highest in outpatient clinics, reference labs and high-volume testing labs.

The national average salary for a full-time MT is $47, 840 per year. MT supervisors checked in at about $59,240, and managers reported an average of about $70,720 annually. Cytotechnologist (CT) wages are slightly higher with staff level workers making an average of $58,032. The survey shows that the highest earner in the field is the pathologists’ assistant (PA), with staff level wages around $72,800 per year. Staff level laboratory assistants make an average annual salary of $28,080, while phlebotomists (PBT) earn $27,040 annually.

Another workforce shortage issue is baby boomer retirement. Thirteen percent of the current laboratory staff is likely to retire in the next five years, according to the survey. Hiring qualified staff to replace baby boomer workers will prove tough with fewer becoming trained. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services reports that by 2012, 138,000 lab professionals will be needed, but fewer than 50,000 will be trained. And as boomers hit their highest healthcare consuming years, an increasing number of laboratory tests will exacerbate the need for trained laboratory professionals.

The survey also shows turnover rates across the field. Since last year, MT staff positions in hospital labs endured a 30 percent increase in turnover, 38 percent for PBT staff positions. Phlebotomist turnover in the West South Central states and in the Far West was significantly higher (56 percent and 50 percent, respectively).

Finally, exposure and awareness of the laboratory profession has had an effect on recruitment. A recent survey by the Coordinating Council on the Clinical Laboratory Workforce showed that of 4,500 students enrolled in a clinical science program, 75 percent were not even aware of the profession until after high school. ASCP has several initiatives to increase awareness of students to career options in laboratory medicine, including a new partnership with Abbott Laboratories and Channel One to introduce pre-college students to clinical laboratory science.

To view the entire survey, click here.

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Read dozens of other stories about the serious shortage of laboratory personnel in the US, and what the ASCP is doing to fight the problem here.