It may be a good time to get a job according to the latest Manpower Employment Outlook Survey.
Data reveals that 17 per cent of employers plan to hire for the upcoming quarter (January to March), while 10 per cent anticipate cutbacks, said Gord Bretsen, regional director for Manpower’s Pacific region. Another 73 per cent of employers plan to maintain their current staffing levels for the upcoming quarter.
“Victoria’s first quarter net employment outlook of seven per cent is a drop from the outlook of 10 per cent, which was reported for the previous quarter,” said Bretsen.
“It is also a six percentage point decrease from the outlook reported during the same time last year indicating a mild hiring environment for the upcoming months.”
The survey of more than 1,900 Canadian employers revealed that 16 per cent of them plan to increase their payrolls in the first quarter of 2012, while 10 per cent anticipate cutbacks. Of those surveyed, 71 per cent of employers expect to maintain their current staffing levels and three per cent are unsure of their hiring intentions for the upcoming quarter.
The survey looked at 11 sectors including mining; public administration; manufacturing – durables and non-durables; transportation; construction; services; finance, insurance and real estate; wholesale and retail trade; education and public utilities.
“Although Western Canada anticipates the most favourable hiring climate, employers in all regions and sectors are telling us that they plan to hire at a more cautious pace from January to March compared with the previous quarter,” said Byrne Luft, vice-president of operations, staffing services for Manpower Canada.
“Despite slight improvement overall, many employers are evidently taking time to evaluate current market conditions and demand for their products and services before committing to additional employees. It will be interesting to see how employer optimism develops through the rest of the year.”
The Manpower Employment Outlook Survey is conducted quarterly to measure employers’ intentions to increase or decrease the number of employees in their workforce during the next quarter. It is the most extensive forward-looking survey of its kind, unparalleled in its size, scope, longevity and area of focus.
The survey has been running for nearly 50 years and is one of the most trusted surveys of employment activity in the world.
The Manpower Employment Outlook Survey is based on interviews with nearly 65,000 public and private employers worldwide and is considered a highly respected economic indicator.
