Category Archives: Employment
Manpower Says Employers Plan on Hiring the Most Workers Since 2008
“NEW YORK (Reuters) – More employers in the United States plan to hire workers next quarter than in any period since the fourth quarter of 2008, according to a survey by Manpower Group, the global employment services giant.
Manpower’s quarterly survey released Tuesday found most employers around the globe were uncertain about hiring more workers in the July through September period given tepid consumer demand. There were certain bright spots, however, with employers in the United States and some parts of Europe feeling cautiously optimistic.
“If you look at it from a global perspective, the overall feeling is that there are definitely challenges,” said Manpower’s CEO Jeff Joerres. But he said employers are more optimistic than in past months about global economic prospects.
Manpower, which surveyed 42 economies, found that employers in 31 countries and territories planned to hire next quarter. Hiring intentions strengthened in 17 economies, including Spain, Greece and the United States, compared to the previous quarter.
Hiring intentions remained unchanged in four economies and weakened in 21, including France, China and India….”
Non Farm Payrolls: Prior 176k, Market Expects 169-175k, Actual 175k
Unemployment rate stands at: 7.6%
April was revised 149k
Government and manufacturing lose steam
Gallup Survey: Less People are Working Today Than a Year Ago
“As the world waits breathless for some Goldilocks print in tomorrow’s non-farm payroll data, Gallup’s most recent survey of employment trends does not paint a pretty picture for the real economy. Though, by the ‘adjustment bureau’ and their Arima-X goal-seeking, nothing is ever clear, not only is the payroll-to-population (the number of people working) worse than a year ago but the unemployment rate is also rising with under-employment – at 18.0% – near 15 month highs. If the NFP print plays out in line with this, the estimate of 165k will be woefully over-optimistic, leaving the question of whether bad-is-good, or have we crossed the Rubicon of belief in moar is better.
The U.S. Payroll to Population employment rate (P2P), as measured by Gallup, worsened in May, dropping to 43.9%, from 44.5% in April. P2P is also down from May 2012, when it was 44.4%
The decline in P2P versus 2012 indicates that fewer people worked full-time for an employer this May compared with a year ago. The 43.9% found this May is similar to the 43.7% recorded in 2011 and 44.0% in 2010.
Gallup’s P2P metric is an estimate of the percentage of the U.S. adult population aged 18 and older who are employed full time by an employer for at least 30 hours per week. P2P is not seasonally adjusted.
…
Gallup’s unadjusted unemployment rate for the U.S. workforce was 7.9% for the month of May, a half-point increase over April, and statistically unchanged from May 2012 (8.0%).
Gallup’s seasonally adjusted U.S. unemployment rate for May was 8.2%, up from 7.8% in April…..”
French Unemployment Climbs to 10.8% as Recession Grows
Initial Claims: Prior 354k, Market Expects 348k, Actual 346k
continuing claims of 2.95m…
Employment Outside the Mainstream, Parental Discretion is Advised
$ZNGA to Pink Slip 18% of Workforce After Announcing Poor Earnings
“Zynga confirmed it was laying off 18 percent of its workforce — which represents 520 employees — in a bid to reduce costs, as it seeks to drastically restructure its troubled business.
The move today will affect every part of the San Francisco social gaming company, cutting $80 million in staff costs. It will also include the closing of its offices in New York, Los Angeles and Dallas, as well as other infrastructure costs, adding to the total expense reduction.
In addition, Zynga has now said in a press release that it is downgrading in its investor guidance for the second quarter with results at the lower end of what Wall Street has been expecting….”
German Unemployment Climbs Four Times Average Estimates
“German unemployment rose more than four times as much as economists estimated in May as the euro area’s sovereign debt crisis and a long winter took their toll on Europe’s largest economy.
The number of people out of work climbed a seasonally adjusted 21,000 to 2.96 million, the Nuremberg-based Federal Labor Agency said today. That’s the fourth straight monthly gain. Economists predicted an increase of 5,000, according to the median of 35 estimates in aBloomberg News survey. The adjusted jobless rate held at 6.9 percent, just above a two-decade low of 6.8 percent….”
Initial Claims: Prior 360k, Market Expects 345k, Actual 340k
last week revised up to 363k…..
Head Hunters Report Business Uptick as Confidence Rises
“Business at executive-recruitment companies is improving, buoyed by increasing confidence among corporate leaders and a stabilization in hiring for senior positions in the financial-services industry.
Heidrick & Struggles International Inc. (HSII) and Russell Reynolds Associates say they see some increase in demand, a trend that was echoed in a recent survey of consultants by William Blair & Co., an independent investment firm. Meanwhile, sentiment among chief executive officers strengthened in April to the highest level in almost two years, as the Chief Executive magazine confidence index rose to 6.07 from 5.55 the prior month, based on an e-mail survey conducted by the magazine.
Rising CEO confidence is a “key indicator” that’s helping to boost demand in the executive-recruitment industry, saidTimothy Ghriskey, chief investment officer at Solaris Asset Management in New York, which manages more than $1.5 billion. “In the mid-to-later stages of an economic expansion, competition for business leadership intensifies, prompting more companies to employ search firms to attract talent.”
Gross domestic product expanded at a 2.5 percent annualized rate in the three months ended March 31, following a 0.4 percent gain in the fourth quarter, according to the Commerce Department. Growth was slower than the 3 percent median estimate of economists surveyed by Bloomberg.
Revenue Growth…”
Americans Applying for Unemployment Falls to a Five Year Low
“WASHINGTON (AP) — The number of Americans who applied for unemployment benefits fell by 4,000 last week to a seasonally adjusted 323,000, a fresh five-year low. The decline signals fewer layoffs and possibly more hiring.
The Labor Department said Thursday that the four-week average, a less volatile figure, dropped 6,250 to 336,750. That the fewest since November 2007, before the recession began.
Applications are a proxy for layoffs. Weekly applications have fallen about 9 percent since November and are now at a level consistent with a healthy economy.
The job market has also improved over the past six months. Net job gains have averaged of 208,000 a month from November through April. That’s up from only 138,000 a month in the previous six months.
Still, much of the job growth has come from fewer layoffs — not increased hiring. Layoffs fell in January to the lowest level on records dating back 12 years, though they have risen moderately since then. At the same time, overall hiring remains far below pre-recession levels and unemploymentremains high at 7.5 percent….”
Non Farm Payroll Data Melts Up Futures and European Markets
DOW up 111
S&P up 12
NASDAQ up 23
Non Farm Payrolls: Prior 88k, Market Expects 155k, Actual 165k
Unemployment rate drops to 7.5%
Hopefully Slowing Worker Productivity Will Inspire More Hiring
“WASHINGTONU.S. worker productivity barely grew from January through March after shrinking in the final three months of 2012. Weak productivity growth could prompt employers to hire more if consumers and businesses continue to increase spending.
The Labor Department says productivity rose at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 0.7 percent in the first quarter, after shrinking 1.7 percent in the previous quarter.
Labor costs increased at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 0.5 percent, below the fourth quarter’s 4.4 percent gain….”
The Challenger, Gray, & Christmas Report Shows Planned Layoffs Have Fallen to the Lowest Levels of the Year
“NEW YORK (Reuters) – The number of planned layoffs at U.S. firms fell to their lowest level of the year in April, suggesting slowing economic growth has not translated into significant job losses, a report showed on Thursday.
Employers announced 38,121 planned job cuts last month, down nearly 23 percent from 49,255 in March, according to the report from consultants Challenger, Gray & Christmas, Inc. It was the lowest level since last December.
April’s layoffs were also down 6 percent from a year ago…..”
ADP Private Payroll Numbers Miss Huge, Futures Fall Further
“The gloomy news continued for jobs as ADP reported Wednesday that private companies created just 119,000 new positions in April.
That was well below expectations and confirmation that the labor market is slowing heading into late spring and early summer.
Economists surveyed by Reuters expected the ADP report to show the private sector created 150,000 jobs in April, down from 158,000 in March.
“Nearly every industry has seen slower growth since the beginning of the year,” Moody’s economist Mark Zandi said on CNBC. “Smaller businesses are experiencing much weaker growth.”
Moody’s Analytics conducts the survey in conjunction with ADP.
The report comes two days before the government releases its nonfarm payrolls growth count for April. Economists recently have been nudging down their projections, which is pegged around 150,000 after March’s dismal 88,000 reading.
The weakness from the ADP report could cause expectations to dim even further.
Small businesses accounted for 50,000 of the new positions, but Zandi noted that the sector is seeing a slowdown likely attributable to the onset of the Affordable Care Act national healthcare plan.
Companies with more than 50 employees will fall under the umbrella of the plan, also known as Obamacare…..”
Employment Cost Index: Prior 0.5%, Market Expects 0.5%, Actual 0.3%
Unemployment Climbs in Germany for a Second Month
“German unemployment rose for a second month in April, adding to signs that Europe’s largest economy is struggling to recover from a slump at the end of last year.
The number of people out of work climbed a seasonally adjusted 4,000 to 2.94 million, the Nuremberg-based Federal Labor Agency said today. Economists predicted an increase of 2,000, according to the median of 29 estimates in a Bloomberg News survey. The adjusted jobless rate held at 6.9 percent, just above a two-decade low of 6.8 percent.
The International Monetary Fund predicts the German economy will expand 0.6 percent this year, even as its biggest export market, the euro area, remains mired in recession. German business and investor confidence dropped in April as Europe’s debt crisis and an unusually long winter delayed the first- quarter rebound predicted by the Bundesbank.
“Uncertainty in the euro area is back and it has taken its toll on the German labor market,” said David Milleker, chief economist at Union Investment GmbH in Frankfurt. “I wouldn’t expect a reduction of unemployment anytime soon.”
The euro was little changed after the report, trading at $1.3086 at 10:30 a.m. in Frankfurt. European stocks rose, with theStoxx Europe 600 Index (SXXP) up 0.1 percent.
Long Winter…”
Initial Claims: Prior 346k, Market Expects 355k, Actual 352k
Continuing claims: Prior 3079k, market expects 3068k, actual 3068k
The Long Term Unemployed Have it Really Bad
“Businesses would rather hire somebody with no relevant experience than hire a person who has been unemployed for a long time, according to new research by Rand Ghayad at Northeastern University.
Ghayad, a Ph.D. candidate in applied economics, sent out thousands of fake resumes in response to hundreds of online job postings and tracked the responses from the employers. The dummy candidates with long gaps in their resumes received fewer callbacks than the candidates with shorter gaps — even if the fictional resume showed no experience relevant to the job.
“Once you are long-term unemployed, even if you come from the same industry, even if you have the right skills, it doesn’t matter to employers anymore,” Ghayad told The Huffington Post. “They prefer to hire someone who’s short-term unemployed.”
Previous research by Ghayad and others has yielded similar results: Companies just don’t want the long-term jobless.
Since late 2009, roughly 40 percent of the unemployed have been out of work six months or longer, which is the duration economists consider “long term.” It’s the highest rate of long-term joblessness the country has seen since at least the 1940s, according to the Labor Department. As of March, that’s 4.6 million people.
Ghayad’s working paper is the latest piece of evidence that long-term joblessness persists not because workers are defective, but because the surplus labor supply allows employers to be picky about the hiring process….”
