A Third of Managers Revving Up Q206 Hiring

A Manpower news release said that 58% of employers anticipate no personnel change while 6% of the 16,000 employers covered by the survey said they were unsure. The latest data marks the ninth straight quarter that more than 20% of the companies surveyed said they plan to add staff. Manpower’s first quarter 2006 survey found 23% planning a hiring hike.

Manpower said the last time the reading topped 30% was in the third quarter of 2005, when 31% of companies surveyed said they planned to add staff.

Manpower CEO Jeff Joerres said in the news release that a shortage of workers is forcing companies to be more competitive in their hiring practices. “There is a shortage going on,” Joerres said. “Companies are looking for the exact talent they need, and they may be having a more difficult time doing that.”

Mining companies expect significant gains in hiring in the second quarter, with 37% planning to increase their payrolls and 3% planning to decrease, the survey said. Construction firms outpaced the other industries in the survey, with 43% planning to increase staffing and 3% planning to reduce it, the survey said.

The Midwest and the Northeast were the least positive, with each region planning to increase 27%. Five percent of Midwest companies surveyed said they planned to decrease staffing compared to 9% in the Northeast.