US Hiring Activity Set to Increase

U.S. employers show no signs of changing their healthy hiring pace in the second quarter of 2006, according to the seasonally adjusted results of the latest Manpower Employment Outlook Survey, conducted quarterly by Manpower Inc.

"The U.S. job market has been growing at a safe, incremental pace in recent years, and Manpower's survey data highlights the comfort zone that has emerged from this climate. Employers have reported similar levels of hiring for nine quarters now, which tells us that they are not willing to throw off the equilibrium with radical shifts in hiring," said Jeffrey A. Joerres, Chairman & CEO of Manpower Inc.

Of the 16,000 U.S. employers surveyed, 30% foresee an increase in hiring activity for the second quarter of 2006, while 6% expect a reduction in payrolls. Fifty-eight percent report no change in hiring plans, and 6% have yet to determine their staffing needs.

Employers in the majority of industry sectors plan little change in hiring as they look toward the second quarter. Those sectors include Construction, Durable and Non-Durable Goods Manufacturing, Transportation/Public Utilities, Wholesale/Retail Trade, Finance/Insurance Real Estate and Services. Minor changes are expected in the Education sector, where employers are slightly more optimistic about hiring than they were at the start of the year, and in the Public Administration sector, where employer confidence has dipped.

"Mining is the one industry where significant hiring movement is in store for the second quarter. Demand for coal has skyrocketed in the wake of high oil and gas prices, and Mining employers have responded by boosting their hiring plans in recent quarters. We haven't seen this degree of confidence in the Mining sector in 25 years," said Joerres.

The hiring outlook for the U.S. regions is the mirror image of the first quarter projections. Staffing plans for the Northeast, Midwest, South and West are all expected to remain consistent through June of 2006.

In addition to the United States, the Manpower Employment Outlook Survey is conducted in 23 other countries and territories. The quarterly report from Manpower Inc. is the most extensive, forward-looking employment survey in the world, gathering data from more than 47,000 employers across the globe each quarter.

The Manpower Employment Outlook Survey released today revealed that second-quarter hiring is expected to be positive in 23 of 24 countries and territories surveyed, with Japanese and German employers reporting their most optimistic hiring plans since the survey began in these countries in the second quarter of 2003. The strongest second-quarter hiring prospects reported globally were in Japan, India, Taiwan, Peru, New Zealand and Hong Kong, with only Italian employers reporting a negative hiring outlook for the quarter ahead. This quarter also marks the first time the survey has been conducted with employers across Peru.

"Despite high fuel prices and other challenges, the global labor market looks set to improve in most of Europe and Asia in the second quarter, with steady hiring set to continue in the Americas," said Jeffrey A. Joerres, Chairman & CEO of Manpower Inc. "German employers are saying they will begin to add employees again, albeit modestly, and hiring activity in Japan should be vigorous, beyond what we normally see in the second quarter - their peak hiring season. Chinese employers say they will reduce their hiring activity compared to last year at this time, while U.S. employers expect to add to their payrolls at a continued steady pace."

In Europe, the second-quarter hiring prospects are the strongest in Spain, Norway, Sweden, Ireland and the UK, based on seasonally adjusted data. Of the eight countries and territories included in the survey across Asia Pacific, hiring activity is expected to be strongest in Japan, India and Taiwan, while the weakest hiring in the region is anticipated in Singapore, Australia and China.

The next Manpower Employment Outlook Survey will be released on June 13, 2006 to report hiring expectations for the third quarter.