Survey shows little interest in hiring

The temporary employment service “Manpower” has some bad news in its latest survey of the hiring plans of Iowa employers.Des Moines Manpower manager Michael Lynch says trends look the same in every part of the country, and at least similar in every part of Iowa.They plan to hire more in construction, but some will hire and some lay off workers in the wholesale, retail and service industries. Lynch says though 60 percent intend to keep their workforce about the same, employers aren’t hanging out the “Help Wanted” sign even for the holiday shopping season.The numbers are somewhat adjusted for seasonal trends, but wholesale and retail sales aren’t looking as promising as they have recently going into the holidays. Manpower found the state average was 21-percent of employers planning to increase the size of their workforce, 12 percent planning to downsize, and 66-percent statewide planning to stay the same.