Milwaukee, WI, December 14--U.S. employers plan to ring in the new year with strong hiring activity, according to the seasonally adjusted results of the latest Manpower Employment Outlook Survey, conducted quarterly by Manpower Inc.
"What a difference a year makes. The job picture moving into 2005 is decidedly more upbeat than it was at the start of 2004. For the past three quarters, employers' hiring intentions have been steady and strong. The current survey results tell us that they are equally prepared to hire staff as they enter the new year," said Jeffrey A. Joerres, chairman & CEO of Manpower Inc.
Of the 16,000 U.S. employers that were surveyed, 24% anticipate an increase in hiring activity for the first quarter of 2005, while 10% expect to decrease staff levels.
Fifty-nine percent of employers surveyed foresee no change in job prospects, and 7% are unsure of their hiring plans. When seasonal variations are removed from the data, the outlook for the first three months of 2005 reveals that employer confidence is expected to inch upward from last quarter and improve greatly from a year ago.
A quarter-over-quarter comparison shows that Construction, Finance/Insurance/Real Estate, Public Administration and Mining employers are ready to increase their payrolls for first quarter, while those in Education plan to slow the hiring pace. Job levels in five of the 10 industry sectors surveyed are expected to remain consistent with fourth quarter hiring. These sectors include Durable and Non-Durable Goods Manufacturing, Transportation/Public Utilities, Wholesale/Retail Trade and Services.
Job seekers are likely to find that the South is the U.S. region that holds the most favorable hiring climate for first quarter. Employers in the West and Northeast expect the same level of hiring as in the final months of 2004. Job prospects in the Northeast continue to trail those in the other three regions, as they have since the second quarter of 2004. Employers in the Midwest anticipate a decline in first quarter payrolls, albeit on a very small scale. The first quarter hiring forecast across the four U.S. regions represents a significant improvement from a year ago.
The Manpower Employment Outlook Survey is conducted in a total of 19 countries and territories, including interviews with more than 35,000 employers across the globe. Employers in 17 of those 19 countries and territories say they expect positive hiring activity in the coming quarter.
