CareerBuilder Forecast Reveals Good Prospects for Seasonal and Permanent Hiring in the Fourth Quarter

CHICAGO, Oct. 2, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Workers who are in the market for a new job before year-end may have more opportunities to choose from, according to CareerBuilder's latest forecast. Nearly three in 10 employers plan to hire full-time, permanent employees in the fourth quarter, up four percentage points over last year. One in four expect to hire seasonal workers, including 43 percent of retailers.

View full report here: http://cb.com/1CGndts

"After experiencing incremental improvements over the past few years, the U.S. labor market is nearing a tipping point," said Matt Ferguson, CEO of CareerBuilder and co-author of The Talent Equation. "The jobs outlook for Q4 is now more in line with pre-recession forecasts as employers cast a greater vote of confidence in both permanent and seasonal hiring. What's also encouraging is that recruitment plans for small businesses with more than 50 employees are keeping pace with larger organizations. We'll continue to see a spotlight on jobs and wages in the upcoming elections and beyond as we strive for an even stronger employment environment in 2015."

The national survey was conducted online by Harris Poll on behalf of CareerBuilder from August 11 to September 5, 2014, and included a representative sample of 2,203 hiring managers and human resource professionals across industries and company sizes.

Full-time, Permanent Hiring in Q3 2014
There was a notable year-over-year gain in hiring in the third quarter. Thirty-four percent of employers added full-time, permanent headcount in Q3, up from 28 percent in the same period in 2013. Ten percent decreased headcount – a slight improvement over 11 percent last year – while 54 percent made no change to staff levels and 2 percent were unsure.

Full-time, Permanent Hiring in Q4 2014
Looking ahead, 29 percent of employers plan to add full-time, permanent employees in Q4, up from 25 percent in the same period in 2013. Nine percent expect to reduce staff, on par with last year. Fifty-seven percent anticipate no change and 5 percent are unsure.

Seasonal Hiring in Q4
Two in five retailers (43 percent) plan to hire seasonal workers in Q4. Last year, 39 percent of retailers had expected to add workers for the holidays.

While retailers typically take center stage when it comes to seasonal employment, companies across industries are looking for extra hands on deck. Twenty-six percent plan to hire seasonal employees in Q4, and 42 percent of these companies expect to transition some seasonal staff members into full-time, permanent roles.

Pay for seasonal workers will increase over last year, according to 27 percent of employers. Thirteen percent anticipate it will decrease. Sixty-three percent of seasonal employers will pay $10 or more per hour while 19 percent will pay $16 or more.   

Nearly half (46 percent) of companies hiring seasonal employees said they're boosting staffs to help with the busier holiday season, while others are focused on wrapping up the year (25 percent) and ramping up for 2015 (24 percent).

Popular seasonal positions companies will be recruiting for in Q4 include:

• Customer Service – 40 percent
• Administrative/Clerical – 15 percent
• Shipping/Delivery – 13 percent
• Accounting/Finance – 12 percent
• Inventory Management – 12 percent
• Information Technology – 11 percent
• Sales (non-retail) – 11 percent
• Gift Wrapping – 10 percent
• Marketing – 7 percent
• Hosting/Greeting – 7 percent

Permanent and Seasonal Hiring By Region
Permanent and seasonal hiring is expected to pick up across U.S. geographies in the coming months. The South is leading in the percentage of employers planning to add full-time, permanent employees in Q4, while the West is leading in the percentage of employers adding seasonal staff. The Midwest continues to trail other regions but still has nearly one in four employers expecting to hire permanent and seasonal employees.

Permanent and Seasonal Hiring By Company Size
Small businesses with more than 50 employees are keeping up with larger organizations in regard to the percentages of employers hiring for permanent and seasonal roles. Those with 50 or fewer employees continue to proceed with caution.

Survey Methodology
This survey was conducted online within the U.S. by Harris Poll on behalf of CareerBuilder among 2,203 hiring and human resource managers ages 18 and over (employed full-time, not self-employed, non-government) between August 11 and September 5, 2014 (percentages for some questions are based on a subset, based on their responses to certain questions). With a pure probability sample of 2,203, one could say with a 95 percent probability that the overall results have a sampling error of +/- 2.09 percentage points. Sampling error for data from sub-samples is higher and varies.

About CareerBuilder®
CareerBuilder is the global leader in human capital solutions, helping companies target and attract great talent. Its online career site, CareerBuilder.com®, is the largest in the United States with more than 24 million unique visitors and 1 million jobs. CareerBuilder works with the world's top employers, providing everything from labor market intelligence to talent management software and other recruitment solutions. Owned by Gannett Co., Inc. (NYSE: GCI), Tribune Company and The McClatchy Company (NYSE: MNI), CareerBuilder and its subsidiaries operate in the United States, Europe, South America, Canada and Asia. For more information, visit www.careerbuilder.com.

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SOURCE CareerBuilder