Confidence Levels Among Manufacturing and Logistics Workers Continues to Rise

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Aug 26, 2015, 01:33 ET

ATLANTA, Aug. 26, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- The Randstad Manufacturing & Logistics Employee Confidence Index (ECI) rose from 55.9 at year-end 2014 to 60.8 points in mid-year 2015, representing an increase of 4.9 points. This is the second straight wave of growth in the ECI among this group, which was 53.3 one year ago. The online survey, conducted by Harris Poll among manufacturing and logistics workers on behalf of Randstad US, measures workers' perceptions regarding the overall strength of the economy, availability of jobs and personal employment prospects. Randstad's mid-year 2015 findings indicate confidence levels among workers in this sector continue to trend upward.

The mid-year report found 38 percent of manufacturing workers believe the economy is getting stronger, and 37 percent say they believe there are more jobs available. As confidence in the overall state of the economy and availability of jobs continues to rise, our findings indicate workers' personal confidence levels are also rising—in fact, 63 percent of workers say it is unlikely they will lose their jobs involuntarily over the next 12 months, but 38 percent say it is likely they will look for another job.

Several macro trends are fueling growth within U.S. Smart Manufacturing, and other technological developments are drastically changing the way plants operate. The CSC Global CIO Survey: 2014-2015 found 81 percent of manufacturers feel big data has a positive effect on production and efficiency, and 65 percent believe big data will be a strategic business driver moving forward. Furthermore, lower costs associated with reshoring are driving more local manufacturing activity, and capital investments are rising.

However, despite significant growth drivers, hiring activity within the manufacturing sector has been fairly slow thus far in 2015. According to the latest Bureau of Labor Statistics' employment summary, manufacturing employment edged up only slightly in July by adding 15,000 new jobs due to an increase of 23,000 jobs in nondurable goods.

"Many experts predicted 2015 would bring robust growth and expansion for the manufacturing sector, and so far that appears to be the case," said Traci Fiatte, Group President, Randstad US. "We're witnessing a growing supply of natural gas in the U.S., which provides more affordable energy for factories and new opportunities for products and services. In fact, PricewaterhouseCoopers estimates that high shale gas recovery and low prices could add one million U.S. manufacturing jobs and reduce natural gas costs by up to $11.6 billion annually through 2025.

"While we haven't seen an aggressive rise in hiring activity thus far in 2015, we believe it's imminent. Our mid-year 2015 survey indicates confidence levels among manufacturing workers continue to rise and they are becoming increasingly more confident in the economy, availability of jobs, as well as their personal employment situations."

Click here to visit our Workforce360 thought leadership site for a more detailed analysis of the current economic situation.

2015 Mid-year Report Highlights:

Workers' confidence in the economy shows steady growth

Nearly 4 in 10 (38%) workers believe the economy is getting stronger.

Workers believe there are more jobs available

Nearly 4 in 10 (37%) workers believe there are more jobs available.

Workers are confident in ability to find a new job

Half of workers (50%) say they are confident in their ability to find a job.

About Randstad Manufacturing & Logistics
With more than 50 years of experience in the Manufacturing & Logistics industry, we can access the right talent at the right time. We designed our products, services and solutions with the specifications required to best ensure that our clients receive qualified, dependable talent who they can trust to perform the job responsibly. With our deep industry understanding, experience and commitment to ongoing education, we have designed an unparalleled service model to deliver reliability, responsibility and results. Our service and expertise in attracting and assessing the right talent for the right job combine to create partnerships that result in ongoing success.

About Randstad US
Randstad US is a wholly owned subsidiary of Randstad Holding nv, a $22.9 billion global provider of HR services. As the third largest staffing organization in the United States, Randstad provides temporary, temporary-to-hire and permanent placement services each week to over 100,000 people through its network of more than 900 branches and client-dedicated locations. Employing over 5,300 recruiting experts, the company is a top provider of outsourcing, staffing, consulting and projects and workforce solutions within the areas of Engineering, Finance and Accounting, Healthcare, Human Resources, IT, Legal, Manufacturing & Logistics, Office & Administration, Pharma and Sales & Marketing.

Learn more at www.randstadusa.com and access Randstad's panoramic U.S. thought leadership knowledge center through its Workforce360 site that offers valuable insight into the latest economic indicators and HR trends shaping the world of work.

Survey Methodology
This survey was conducted online within the United States by Harris Poll on behalf of Randstad from January 13-15, March 11-13, April 15-17 and June 9-11, 2015 among 3,978 individuals ages 18 and older, of which 203 were employed in manufacturing and logistics. This online survey is not based on a probability sample and therefore no estimate of theoretical sampling error can be calculated. Industry-level ECI estimates referenced prior to 2015 were based on six monthly waves of aggregated data. The mid-year and year-end industry ECI estimates in 2015 are computed using four waves of periodic data collected across the indicated timeframe. For complete survey methodology, including weighting variables, please contact [email protected].

SOURCE Randstad US