Manpower: Q2 US Hiring to Match Q1

According to a Manpower news release ,of the 16,000 US employers surveyed, 30% plan to add staff in the second quarter while 7% anticipate hiring cutbacks. Fifty-eight percent of the hiring managers anticipate no change in staff levels for the coming quarter and 5% are unsure. This marks the fifth consecutive quarter in which employers have reported hiring expectations that rival those last seen in the beginning months of 2001, according to the staffing agency.

Quarter over quarter hiring plans are remarkably similar across the 10 industry sectors surveyed, according to the announcement. The most notable differences are among Education and Public Administration employers who anticipate a slightly more active hiring pace than in the first quarter of 2005. Durable Goods Manufacturing and Wholesale/Retail Trade employers, on the other hand, intend to decrease staff levels on a very small scale from April to June, the announcement said.

“After three years of volatility in their job outlook, US employers have shown stability in their hiring plans for more than a year now,” said Jeffrey Joerres, chairman & CEO of Manpower Inc, in the news release. “Companies have seemed to find a rhythm in their hiring practices. What we are witnessing from US businesses is that they are very willing to increase headcount to meet demand for their products and services, but will only do so if tied to measured demand, as opposed to an anticipation of demand.”

Little change is in store for second quarter hiring activity across the four US regions, the staffing company said. Job seekers are likely to find that the West offers the most promising job picture for the April – June period. For the fifth consecutive quarter, employers in the Northeast intend to bring on employees at a more conservative pace than the other regions.

In addition to the United States, the Manpower Employment Outlook Survey is conducted in 20 other countries and territories, including more than 40,000 employers across the globe. Second quarter employment prospects are set to improve most notably for the second quarter in Japan, Germany, Mexico, Norway and Australia, the survey found.