Hiring this month is expected to be even weaker than in October 2010, especially with difficulties in recruiting and higher compensation levels, according to a survey by the Society for Human Resource Management.
The survey, which interviewed HR professionals from more than 1,000 U.S. companies, finds that the service sector will decrease hiring from last year by a net of 10.4 points, with 29 percent of companies planning to add jobs in October 2011 compared to 39.4 percent from last year. The manufacturing sector, however, will increase hiring but only by 1.1 points from 2010, meaning 30.4 percent of manufacturing companies will hire during October 2011 compared to 29.3 percent from last year.
The survey also indicates that HR professionals are having trouble finding talent for key positions, and there are new slight increases in new-hire compensation. In fact, 9.7 percent of respondents in the manufacturing sector had more recruiting troubles in September 2011, a slight uptick of 4.9 points from 2010. Among the private sector, 11.6 percent of respondents say recruiting has become harder for key positions in September, a 4.6 point gain from last year.
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"Even with subdued hiring rates and elevated unemployment, once again we are seeing the recruiting difficulty index rise in both sectors," says Jennifer Schramm, GPHR, manager of workplace trends and forecasting at SHRM. "This suggests that employers are having difficulty connecting with jobseekers that possess the skills they are looking for."
Of the respondents in the manufacturing sector, 8.7 percent say new-hire compensation is higher, as it increased 6.7 points from last year. The service sector also increased new-hire compensation by 7.9 percent in September 2011.
"The increase in HR professionals reporting a bump in compensation offered to new hires is small but noteworthy given the weak economy," Schramm says.
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