It won’t be a cruel, cruel summer, but Manpower predicts a cool summer, at least when it comes to hiring in the United States.
Manpower’s quarterly survey of 14,000 U.S. employers suggests that 29% expect to hire during the third quarter, 7% plan layoffs, 58% see no workforce changes, and 6% are unsure.
“Employers are holding steady with their employment projections for the third quarter and taking a wait-and-see approach as they begin to look toward year-end,” Manpower CEO Jeffrey Joerres said in a statement.
These survey results come on the tail of a recent Spherion poll, showing that the majority of U.S. workers remain confident in their personal job situations.
The survey shows 59% of workers are confident in their ability to find a new job and 65% are confident about their employers’ future prospects.
Also, the survey showed that only 23% believe there are more jobs available now, a decline of two percentage points from April.
And even though macroeconomic confidence dropped in May, 78% reported it was unlikely they would lose their job in the next 12 months, showing no change from April.
Hiring Trends: Location and Industry
Employers in construction, durable and non-durable goods manufacturing, transportation/public utilities, finance, and services all foresee a hiring climate that is unchanged from the second quarter forecast, according to the Manpower Employment Outlook Survey.
However, mining, wholesale/retail, and public administration employers anticipate a slight decrease in the hiring pace.
Manpower calls this slowdown a sign that the moderate decline in these industry sectors is likely to continue through the next three months.
The Manpower survey indicates that job prospects are strongest in the West. Employers in the Northeast continue to be the least optimistic about hiring, especially in the weakening non-durable goods manufacturing sector. The South is holding steady, while in the Midwest, 27% of employers said they plan workforce additions, 7% plan job cuts, and 61% see no changes ahead.