Express Employment Professionals Hiring Survey Reveals Employment Trends Increase For Second Quarter 2013

OKLAHOMA CITY, April 16, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Employers plan to continue hiring new employees in the second quarter of 2013, according to the results of a hiring trends survey conducted by Express Employment Professionals, the nation's largest privately-held staffing company.

According to 566 employers across the U.S. and Canada, 38 percent of respondents plan to hire for commercial and light industrial staff – a seven percent increase from the first quarter. Additionally, 19 percent of respondents anticipate hiring administrative and clerical employees, surpassing last quarter's numbers by three percent.

"These survey results suggest that 2013 will prove to be a strong year for employment growth in general, as well as for the staffing industry," said Bob Funk, CEO and chairman of the board for Express Employment Professionals. "As hiring is up and the economy continues to edge toward recovery, businesses are relying more and more on staffing companies to complement their core staff.

"In today's economy, it's more important than ever for companies to retain their top talent because of the difficulty in finding skilled workers."

According to the hiring trends survey, 43 percent of respondents said it was, "somewhat easy to very easy" to fill new staff openings in their companies – an increase of seven percent compared to last quarter. However, 54 percent of respondents indicated that they are still having some difficulty recruiting for and filling positions, up three percent from the last survey.

Employers cited work ethic and integrity, attitude, and a credible work history as the most important considerations when interviewing and hiring new candidates, following the same patterns as last quarter.

Express Employment Professionals is on a mission to put a million people to work annually. In 2012, Express helped more than 367,000 people find jobs with more than 600 franchises in the U.S., Canada and South Africa. Temporary staffing sales for the Oklahoma City-based company totaled more than $2.3 billion in 2012.

Offices offer a full range of employment solutions, including evaluation hire, temporary staffing, professional search and human resources. Express focuses on a wide range of positions, including professional, commercial and administrative. For more information about Express, visit www.expresspros.com.

SOURCE Express Employment Professionals