Just 20% expect to boost 2Q hiring

Just 20% expect to boost 2Q hiring
60 percent of local companies plan no change in payrolls

Tuesday, March 14, 2006

From staff reports
Huntsville Times

Employers in the Huntsville area report they are about half as likely to hire new employees during the second quarter of 2006 as they were during the same quarter last year, according to a Manpower survey.

From April to June, 20 percent of the local companies interviewed plan to hire more employees, compared with 40 percent for the second quarter 2005. Three percent of companies expect to reduce their payrolls, 60 percent expect no change, and 17 percent said they were unsure of their hiring plans.

Employers in the Huntsville metropolitan area expect similar hiring activity compared with the first quarter, when 21 percent of the companies interviewed intended to increase head count, said Cheron Pitts, a Manpower spokeswoman. "Employers are much less optimistic about hiring than they were a year ago."

Statewide, 31 percent of employers surveyed said they plan to add jobs, and 4 percent plan to cut their work force. Fifty-eight percent said they expect no change in employment numbers, and 7 percent said they were unsure of their hiring plans.

For the coming quarter, job prospects appear best in construction, durable goods manufacturing, transportation, public utilities and sales. Service industry employers revealed mixed hiring intentions, while those in education were unsure of their staffing plans. Hiring in other sectors is expected to remain unchanged.