Manpower survey shows positive jobs outlook for Illinois

Employers in Illinois expect to hire at a solid pace during the third quarter of 2014, according to the Manpower Employment Outlook Survey released Tuesday.

From July to September, 18 percent of the companies interviewed plan to hire more employees, while 5 percent expect to reduce their payrolls. Another 75 percent expect to maintain their current staff levels and 2 percent are not certain of their hiring plans. This yields a Net Employment Outlook of 13 percent.

“The third quarter survey results show slightly stronger optimism about hiring expectations compared to Quarter 2 when the Net Employment Outlook was 11 percent,” said Manpower spokesperson Anne Edmunds. “Compared to one year ago when the Net Employment Outlook was 9 percent, employers anticipate an uptick in the hiring pace.”

Summary of Results for Illinois

*The Net Employment Outlook is derived by taking the percentage of employers anticipating an increase in hiring activity and subtracting from this the percentage of employers expecting a decrease in hiring activity.

For the coming quarter, job prospects appear best in Construction, Nondurable Goods Manufacturing, Transportation & Utilities, Wholesale & Retail Trade, Information, Professional & Business Services, Education & Health Services, Leisure & Hospitality, Other Services and Government. Employers in Durable Goods Manufacturing plan to reduce staffing levels, while hiring in Financial Activities is expected to remain unchanged.

Of the more than 18,000 employers surveyed in the United States, 22 percent expect to add to their workforces, and 4 percent expect a decline in their payrolls during Quarter 3 2014. Seventy-one percent of employers anticipate making no change to staff levels, and the remaining 3 percent of employers are undecided about their hiring plans. When seasonal variations are removed from the data, the Net Employment Outlook is +14%, a one point increase from the Quarter 2 2014 Net Employment Outlook of +13%.

That is the best outlook since the second quarter of 2008, Manpower said.

U.S. Results Summary

Of the more than 18,000 U.S. employers surveyed, 22 percent anticipate an increase in staff levels in their Quarter 3 2014 hiring plans, while anticipated staff reductions remain among the lowest in survey history at 4 percent. Seventy-one percent of employers expect no change in their hiring plans. The final 3 percent of employers are undecided about their hiring intentions, resulting in a Net Employment Outlook of +18%. When seasonally adjusted, the Net Employment Outlook becomes +14%.

Incremental Growth in Hiring Levels Continues in U.S. Among 18,000 Surveyed Employers

“We’re seeing a measured level of improvement across all labor segments that has been building over the last five years,” said ManpowerGroup CEO Jonas Prising. “While dramatic jumps in hiring are uncommon, we continue to see a slow, yet steady, increase in demand for talent from our clients as they take a holistic approach in rebuilding their employee base.”

The third quarter research shows that U.S. employers expect hiring intentions to remain relatively stable quarter-over-quarter across all regions, and slightly increase compared to one year ago at this time. Employers have a positive Outlook in all 13 industry sectors included in the survey, with Mining, Wholesale & Retail Trade and Leisure & Hospitality employers reporting the strongest hiring intentions.

Among the 50 states, employers in North Dakota, Delaware, Michigan, Minnesota, Alaska and Idaho indicate the strongest Net Employment Outlooks, while New Mexico, Mississippi, Kansas, Nevada, Illinois and Florida project the weakest Outlooks.

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