The few companies that are hiring these days are skipping the drawn out process of traditional recruiting and instead are snatching up the right person and immediately sending the lucky applicant back to work, says Jeffrey Joerres, CEO of ManpowerGroup.

As the labor market remains weak and a sea of job seekers remain in the bullpen ready to jump in the market, all it takes is a quick phone call.

"In the face of spikes in uncertainty and weaker demand, companies have the ability to dial down their workforces, halting hiring at a moment’s notice and operating in a 'just-in-time talent' mode," Joerres tells MarketWatch.

That's also helping to keep unemployment rates high.

After averaging 215,000 new jobs a month in February to April, job growth slowed to 21,000 in the past two months, sending the unemployment rate climbing to 9.2 percent in June from 8.8 percent in March.

The good news is that when demand for talent increases, companies can hit the "fast forward" button and hire more people in a quicker manner.

Keep an eye on consumer demand figures to serve as an indicator when that will happen. "Demand trumps all," Joerres said.