Jobs Survey Finds Steady But Cautious Hiring

U.S. employers are set to enter the new year with a steady hiring pace similar to the past two years, according to the seasonally adjusted results of the latest ManpowerEmployment Outlook Survey, conducted quarterly by Manpower Inc.

"Although the U.S. employment outlook remains stable, hiring managersare leaning toward a softened job pace, which you can see by the subtledecline in confidence in the last two quarters of survey results," says Jonas Prising, president of Manpower North America. "This is by no means adramatic shift in employer sentiment, but it does indicate that companiesare giving more thought to posting help wanted notices."

Of the 14,000 U.S. employers surveyed, 23% expect to add to theirpayrolls during the first quarter of 2007, while 11% expect to reduce stafflevels. Sixty percent expect no change in the hiring pace, and 6% areundecided about their hiring plans.

The seasonally adjusted survey results show that employers in the Non-Durable Goods Manufacturing, Wholesale/Retail Trade and Services sectorsremain confident and foresee little change in the hiring pace compared tothe fourth quarter. Hiring is expected to improve slightly in the Education and Public Administration sectors, and Mining employers foresee a more notable, albeit modest, improvement in the employment landscape.

In four of the 10 industry sectors surveyed, employers expect weaker hiring activity in the first three months of 2007 versus the final quarter of 2006. These sectors include Construction, Durable Goods Manufacturing,Transportation/Public Utilities and, especially, Finance/Insurance/RealEstate.

"The Finance/Insurance/Real Estate sector was one of the strongest performers in the survey throughout most of 2006, but the first quarter forecast for 2007 indicates a significant change in attitude. Employers inthis sector reported the weakest hiring expectations, making job prospectsmuch tighter than in recent years," says Prising.

The quarter-over-quarter hiring outlook for the four U.S. regions isconsistent with fourth quarter results in the Northeast, Midwest and South. Employers in the West are slightly less optimistic than they were in the final months of 2006. Compared with last year at this time, employers inthe South and West have slightly weaker hiring plans. Job prospects in theMidwest are expected to be about the same, while a brighter jobs picture ispredicted for the Northeast. Employer optimism is most apparent in the South, while companies in the Midwest are most reserved about their hiringplans in the new year.

In addition to the United States, the Manpower Employment OutlookSurvey is conducted in 26 other countries and territories. The quarterlyreport from Manpower Inc. is the most extensive, forward-looking employmentsurvey in the world, gathering data from nearly 50,000 employers across theglobe each quarter. International survey results show that employers are optimistic about adding to their workforces in the first quarter of 2007, with those in 20 of 23 countries and territories reporting more robust hiring plans than oneyear ago.

"The global labor market looks set for a positive start to 2007 withemployers in most of Europe and Asia planning to increase hiring comparedto the first quarter of 2006, and the U.S. job market continuing to plugalong at a steady pace," says Jeffrey Joerres, chairman & CEO of Manpower Inc. "The German labor market appears to be gaining momentum with a secondconsecutive quarter of healthier job prospects ahead, while employers inSingapore and India are set to accelerate hiring considerably from 12months ago."

The most optimistic hiring expectations for the first quarter are in Peru, Singapore, India, Argentina, South Africa, Costa Rica, Japan, Australia and New Zealand. Employers in Belgium, Costa Rica, Peru, Ireland, Japan, Spain, Switzerland and South Africa are reporting their mostpositive hiring plans since the survey began in these countries. In addition, the survey was expanded to Argentina this quarter, where hiring expectations are among the strongest in the survey.