The Tax Job Market is Weird Right Now – Let’s Talk About it

Hey there, tax pros. While a lot of you are out there living your best “slow season” lives — vacations, patio drinks, and pretending to not check your email — we’re doing the exact opposite. We’re grinding, hunting down opportunities, and finding talent to fill them. It’s kind of ironic: when you relax, we hustle. And when you go full beast mode around March/April, we take a breath. Sort of – thankfully industry hiring keeps us from starving during your busy season.

But this year? Things feel…off. Not COVID-era crazy — no one’s job-hopping every 6 months for a $10K raise anymore — but definitely not the pre-2020 “normal” either. Everything is slower. Like, “waiting-in-line-at-the-DMV” slow. Companies that used to pull the trigger in a week are now dragging it out for over a month. Urgency? Never heard of her.

And while the media loves a good doom headline about layoffs, it’s not full-on bloodbath territory (yet). But let’s be real: more tax pros are unemployed right now than we’ve seen since Q2 2020. Back then, people bounced back fast — often with a pay bump. This time? That safety net is looking a little frayed. Employers are holding the cards again.

So what’s the vibe out there?

• If you played musical chairs with your job every year during the hiring frenzy, you might be paying for that now.
• If you’re still refusing to go back to the office (and your company says “3 days minimum”), that could be a problem.
• If your performance didn’t stand out, there’s less room to hide.

Basically, Darwin would be proud.

It used to feel like tax was immune to market forces — stable, secure, “recession-proof.” But throw in globalization and AI, and suddenly the Teflon coating is wearing off. So yeah, it’s a weird time. Jerome Powell’s out here sweating in his off-the-rack Ferragamos, and there’s no economic superhero coming to the rescue just yet. Maybe Elon’s cooking something up in a Tesla lab, who knows?

In the meantime, we’ll keep doing what we do best: connecting the right people with the right roles, and giving it to you straight. If you want the real scoop on what’s happening out there — job-wise, market-wise, or just need to vent — hit us up. Let’s figure it out together.

We’re in this together,

Jay McCauley,

Executive Recruiter

jay.mccauley@oxfordtaxrecruiting.com

303-730-0100