1 in 3 local
companies plan to
hire, survey saysIsle employers are more
optimistic about the economy
The outlook for Honolulu's summer employment market is hot, hot, hot, according to a poll of businesses by Manpower Inc.
While the job outlook is bullish across the United States, the western region of the United States, which includes Hawaii, is the only region where employers are even more optimistic than they were in a previous survey.
In its latest quarterly employment outlook survey, Manpower found that one-third of the Hawaii companies it contacted said they were inclined to hire more people between July and September. The rest said they expect to maintain their current staffing levels, while none said that they intend to reduce their workforce.
According to the survey, Honolulu area employers are growing more optimistic about hiring plans than they were a year ago or even just a few months ago, said Doris Hannaford, Manpower's Honolulu area manager.
"A year ago at this time, employers revealed significantly weaker hiring intentions when 7 percent of companies surveyed thought employment increases were likely and 7 percent intended to cut back," Hannaford said.
The findings are even brighter than Manpower's second-quarter forecast, when 27 percent of businesses said they planned on adding workers, and another 7 percent intended to cut back their hiring pace, she said.
For the third quarter of this year, Manpower found that job opportunities are strongest in construction, manufacturing, public utilities, retail, education and services.
"The fact that employers expect to hire at the same pace in the third quarter suggests that they continue to feel confident about the sustainability of demand for their products and services," said Jeffrey A. Joerres, Manpower's chairman and chief executive. "This is good news for job seekers across the country."
Of the 16,000 U.S. employers who were surveyed, 30 percent plan further hiring while 6 percent expect staffing declines. The majority, 59 percent, anticipate no change, while 5 percent of companies say they are uncertain.