WP Job Manager and Google for Jobs

In this article, I’ll explain how WP Job Manager integrates with Google for Jobs so that your jobs can get listed on the World’s biggest (and free) job board.

We’ll look at what WP Job Manager does and doesn’t do and how to fill in the gaps.

Let’s go!

How does WP Job Manger integrate with Google for Jobs?

Google for Jobs (GfJ) uses something called structured data to find and understand the jobs on your website.

Specifically, it’s looking for the ‘JobPosting‘ data type and the associated properties to index your jobs.

The structured data won’t be visible to people viewing your website, it is added specifically for the likes of Google.

Google guide to adding structured data

What does JobPosting structured data look like?

Here is an example of some JobPosting structured data:

<script type="application/ld+json">
{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "JobPosting",
  "baseSalary": "100000",
  "jobBenefits": "Medical, Life, Dental",
  "datePosted": "2011-10-31",
  "description": "Description: ABC Company Inc. seeks a full-time mid-level software engineer to develop in-house tools.",
  "educationRequirements": "Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science, Information Systems or related fields of study.",
  "employmentType": "Full-time",
  "experienceRequirements": "Minumum 3 years experience as a software engineer",
  "incentiveCompensation": "Performance-based annual bonus plan, project-completion bonuses",
  "industry": "Computer Software",
  "jobLocation": {
    "@type": "Place",
    "address": {
      "@type": "PostalAddress",
      "addressLocality": "Kirkland",
      "addressRegion": "WA"
    }
  },
  "occupationalCategory": "15-1132.00 Software Developers, Application",
  "qualifications": "Ability to work in a team environment with members of varying skill levels. Highly motivated. Learns quickly.",
  "responsibilities": "Design and write specifications for tools for in-house customers Build tools according to specifications",
  "salaryCurrency": "USD",
  "skills": "Web application development using Java/J2EE Web application development using Python or familiarity with dynamic programming languages",
  "specialCommitments": "VeteranCommit",
  "title": "Software Engineer",
  "workHours": "40 hours per week"
}
</script>

Looks scary!

But read it line by line and you can start to see common data points for jobs, such as baseSalary and industry.

What structured data does WP Job Manager output?

Here is an example of structured data that has been output by WP Job Manager:

{
  "@context":"http:\/\/schema.org\/",
  "@type":"JobPosting",
  "datePosted":"2023-08-08T14:50:55+01:00",
  "validThrough":"2023-09-05T23:59:59+01:00",
  "title":"Management Accountant",
  "description":"<p><strong>Management Accountant<\/strong> required for our client based in Citywest, a leading service provider within the pharmaceutical and healthcare...Commercial acumen and profit optimization.<\/li>\n<li>Exceptional attention to detail",
  "hiringOrganization":{
    "@type":"Organization",
    "name":"Lincoln"
  },
  "jobLocation":{
    "@type":"Place",
    "address":"South Dublin"
  },
  "baseSalary":{
    "@type":"MonetaryAmount",
    "currency":"\u20ac",
    "value":{
      "@type":"QuantitativeValue",
      "value":"\u20ac60k - 70k per year",
      "unitText":"YEAR"
    }
  },
  "mainEntityOfPage":{
    "@id":"https:\/\/lincoln.ie\/job\/management-accountant-36786\/"
  }
}

Running this code through Google’s structured data test we get the following:

This shows us that it has found the JobPosting schema, that it is valid, and that there are 6 non-critical issues.

Yay! This means that Google for Jobs can successfully index your job!

Common issues with WP Job Manager and Google for Jobs

The biggest issue that most recruiters face when using structured data is that the hiringOrganization property is missing.

Having no hiringOrganization will mean that you job is invalid, and won’t be indexed, so it’s important to add the ‘Company name’ in the ‘Job Data’ section of the edit job page.

WP Job Manager is a powerful tool and it does a great job of outputting the structured data required for Google for Jobs.

Just make sure to validate your job posts using the Rich Results Test and fix any critical issues that you find there.