Quarter-over-quarter data suggests hiring outlooks may be stabilizing, especially in Europe

MILWAUKEE, June 10 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Employers in most of theworld's major labor markets are less optimistic about hiring in the thirdquarter, saying they will add fewer employees to their payrolls compared toone year ago, according to the Manpower Employment Outlook Survey of globalhiring trends released today by Manpower Inc. (NYSE: MAN). The quarterlysurvey results indicate a relatively stable outlook -- mainly in Europe, withabout half of the countries included in the survey program expecting to reducehiring, and the other half planning to continue hiring at a steady pace orincreasing headcount in the third quarter.

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'It should be no surprise that the global labor market is decidedly morecautious in light of the current economic climate, with employers in most ofthe countries we survey planning to slow the pace of hiring from this timelast year,' said Jeffrey A. Joerres, Chairman & CEO of Manpower Inc.'Employers in all of the G7 countries are expecting to hire at a slower pacefrom July through September than they were a year ago, which is concerning,however the quarterly trend shows that these labor markets remain healthy withfive of the seven countries holding steady or showing improvement.

'Of the G7 countries, only those employers in the U.S. and Japan areplanning to reduce hiring between second and third quarter of this year,'Joerres added. 'France, Germany, Italy and the U.K. are all planning tomaintain a steady hiring pace from now through September, while Canadianemployers indicate a slight improvement. In the important emerging markets ofChina and India, employers are planning to increase hiring as they enter thethird quarter.'

The Manpower Employment Outlook Survey is the most extensive,forward-looking employment survey in the world with interviews of more than55,000 employers each quarter. The survey data reveals that the mostoptimistic third-quarter hiring plans globally are reported by employers inIndia, Singapore, Peru, Poland, Costa Rica, Hong Kong, Romania, Argentina,Taiwan, Australia, Mexico and Japan. On the other hand, employers in Spain,Italy and Ireland are reporting the weakest job prospects in the next threemonths.

Of the seven countries surveyed in the Americas, employers in Peru, CostaRica and Argentina are most optimistic about adding staff in the next threemonths, while those in Canada are the least optimistic. Mexican employerscontinue to be upbeat about hiring while employer confidence in the U.S.continues to decline.

'The employment picture in the U.S. is slightly weaker than three monthsago, with the Construction sector continuing to struggle. However, jobseekers should find ample opportunities in the Services sector. Despite theweaker hiring climate there are still specific skills across the country thatare in very high demand, such as engineers, machinists and skilled manualtrades, where demand is outstripping supply,' said Joerres. 'The weaknessseen north of the border has not appeared to suppress Mexican employers'appetite for workers.