Nearly one in five businesses in Iowa anticipate adding workers over the next three months, according to the latest Manpower Employment Outlook Survey.
Manpower spokesperson Kathy Joblinkske says Iowa’s fourth-quarter outlook is among the strongest in the nation.
She says 19% of Iowa’s companies plan to hire more employees between October and December, while 8% plan to decrease staffing levels. That gives Iowa a “net employment outlook” of 11%. The overall U.S. net employment outlook is 8%.
Joblinske says the Iowa employment outlook is the third best in the country, behind only North Dakota and Wyoming – which both posted net employment outlooks of 15-percent. The Manpower survey shows 71% of Iowa’s employers anticipate no change in staffing levels.
Joblinske noted Iowa’s fourth-quarter outlook is much stronger than the survey taken in 2010. “A year ago, the net employment outlook was just one percent,” Joblinske said. “So, (businesses) are much more optimistic than a year ago.” The employment picture in Iowa is also much more positive than many neighboring states.
The net employment outlook for Missouri is 8%, Illinois is 3%, while Minnesota and Nebraska are both at 4%. More than 18,000 employers are surveyed in the U.S. as part of the quarterly Manpower report.
www.manpower.com