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Tuesday, June 13, 2006

Survey: 31% of Companies Plan to Hire; Duke City Data Are Much Higher

Journal Staff and Wire Report
    MILWAUKEE— Thirty-one percent of U.S. companies intend to increase staffing levels in the third quarter this year, on par with last quarter, according to a survey of 16,000 employers prepared for release today.
    In New Mexico, the survey found a much larger percentage of Albuquerque-area companies plan to increase hiring, while between 20 and 27 percent of Las Cruces, Roswell and Santa Fe-area businesses plan to add personnel.
    The national report marks the 10th straight quarter that more than 20 percent of the companies surveyed said they plan to add staff. The expected staffing level increase was 30 percent for the second quarter of this year.
    Six percent of companies surveyed expect to reduce employment in the third quarter, while 57 percent expect no change, according to the survey by Milwaukee-based global staffing firm Manpower Inc. Six percent of companies are unsure of their plans, according to the quarterly survey, which began in 1962.
    The trend indicates the economy continues to be healthy and will not see any major shifts until employers see more noticeable changes in demand for their products and services, said Manpower CEO Jeff Joerres.
    In New Mexico, the survey found that from July to September, 47 percent of Albuquerque area companies interviewed plan to hire more employees, while 10 percent expect to reduce their payrolls, Manpower spokesperson Jeff Parker said. Another 43 percent of those polled expect to maintain their current staff levels.
    "Albuquerque-area employers have weaker hiring intentions than in the second quarter, when 59 percent of the companies interviewed intended to add staff and 3 percent planned to reduce head count," said Parker.
    The survey also found that only 27 percent of Las Cruces-area businesses plan to increase hiring, 20 percent in the Roswell area and 27 percent in the Santa Fe area.
    On a national level, the economy appears to be balancing as some industries, such as construction and mining, are seeing employment slowdowns while others, such as the insurance and banking sectors, are rising.
    The hiring outlook in the West continued to outpace the other regions' forecasts with 36 percent of companies planning to increase staffing and 8 percent planning to decrease.
    Job prospects improved the most in the Northeast, with 30 percent of companies saying they plan to increase staff and 6 percent saying they plan to decrease. Last quarter, 27 percent of the region's companies reported a rise in staffing levels and 9 percent said they planned to decrease.