United States Employment Outlook - report from Manpower

Manpower Employment Outlook Survey United States Q3/2011
More than 18,000 interviews have been conducted with employers within the United States, including all 50 states, the top 100 Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs), the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico, to measure hiring intentions between July and September 2011. The mix of industries within the survey follows the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) Supersectors and is structured to be representative of the U.S. economy.

All participants were asked, "How do you anticipate total employment at your location to change in the three months to the end of September 2011 as compared to the current quarter?"   Among U.S. employers surveyed, 20 percent expect to add to their workforces, and eight percent expect a decline in their payrolls during Quarter 3 2011. Sixty-nine percent of employers anticipate making no change to staff levels, and the remaining three percent of employers are undecided about their Quarter 3 2011 hiring plans.

When seasonal variations are removed from the data, the Net Employment Outlook is +8%. Survey results suggest that employers expect a relatively stable hiring pace during Quarter 3 2011 compared to Quarter 2 2011. The July – September Outlook for the U.S. shows a slight increase compared to one year ago at this time. U.S. employers have now conveyed a positive Outlook for seven straight quarters.

All four U.S. regions surveyed report a positive Net Employment Outlook. When seasonal variations are removed from the data, employers in the Northeast region report the strongest Outlook at +10%. Quarter-over-quarter, plans to add employees are slightly up among employers in the Northeast and remain essentially the same among employers in the Midwest, South and West. Compared to one year ago at this time, employers in all four regions surveyed project a slight increase in hiring for Quarter 3 2011. The most significant increase year-over-year is in the West region, where there is a four-point increase in the Net Employment Outlook.