Private Sector Gained 582,000 Jobs in Q2 2012; California Led With 108,383 New Jobs

From March 2012 to June 2012 gross job gains from opening and expanding private sector establishments were 7.0 million, an increase of 69,000 from the previous quarter, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Over this period, gross job losses from closing and contracting private sector establishments were 6.4 million, an increase of 301,000 from the previous quarter.

The difference between the number of gross job gains and the number of gross job losses yielded a net employment gain of 582,000 jobs in the private sector during the second quarter of 2012. Continue Reading

Jobs Cuts in 2012 Lower Than Any Year Since 1997

After three consecutive months of increased layoff activity, the number of planned job cuts announced in December plunged to 32,556, the second lowest monthly total of 2012.

Overall, employers announced 523,362 job cuts in 2012; the fewest since 1997, when job cuts totaled 434,350.

Source: Global outplacement consultancy Challenger, Gray & Christmas, Inc.

Optimism By Employers: India Most and Italy Least

Matt Ferguson, CEO of Careerbuilder

A new job forecast for the 10 largest world economies tells a tale of both confidence and caution. Brazil and India are voicing the greatest confidence with more than two-thirds of employers in these markets planning to add full-time, permanent headcount in 2013. Italy is the least optimistic, housing more employers who expect to decrease staff than those who expect to hire.

“The job outlook presents varying degrees of growth and deceleration as governments and businesses strive to rebuild and expand and deal with large deficits,” said Matt Ferguson, CEO of CareerBuilder. “Hiring activity in the BRIC countries (Brazil, Russia, India and China) is projected to be significantly higher than other markets while recruitment in Europe remains sluggish as leaders struggle to resolve a debt crisis that has global implications. The overall hiring picture is improving, but companies will remain watchful as they navigate headwinds and maneuver through somewhat precarious economic terrain.” Continue Reading

10.3% More Seasonal Hires in 2012 Than 2012

John Challenger of Challenger, Gray & Christmas

Despite some year-end uncertainty related to fiscal cliffs, a devastating hurricane and election-year politicking, retailers were confident enough in the final three months of 2012 to ramp up holiday hiring to its highest level in six years, according to an analysis of government employment data released by global outplacement consultancy Challenger, Gray & Christmas, Inc.

Employment in the retail sector increased by a net 728,300 jobs, between October 1 and December 31, according to non-seasonally adjusted data, released last week by the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics.  That is 10.3 percent higher than 2011, when retailers added 660,200 extra workers over the final three months of the year.  The nearly 730,000 retail jobs added this year represents the strongest year-end hiring surge since 2006, when employment in the sector increased by 746,900. Continue Reading

Private Sector Employment Increased Whopping 215,000 in December

2001-12 Change in Total Nonfarm Private Employment

Private sector employment increased by 215,000 jobs from November to December, according to the December ADP National Employment Report®, which is produced by Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (ADP®), a leading provider of human capital management solutions, in collaboration with Moody’s Analytics. The report, which is derived from ADP’s actual payroll data, measures the change in total nonfarm private employment each month on a seasonally-adjusted basis. The November 2012 report, which reported job gains of 118,000, was revised upward by 30,000 to 148,000 jobs.

Goods-producing employment rose by 28,000 jobs in December as a large gain in construction jobs of 39,000 more than offset the 11,000 decline in manufacturing employment. Service-providing jobs increased by 187,000. Among the service industries reported by the ADP National Employment Report, trade/transportation/utilities services had the largest gain with 53,000 jobs added over the month. Professional/business services added 37,000 jobs and financial activities added 14,000 jobs in December. Continue Reading

December Layoffs Lowest Since 1997

John Challenger of Challenger, Gray & Christmas

After three consecutive months of  increased layoff activity, the number of  planned job cuts announced in December plunged to 32,556, the second lowest monthly total of 2012.  Overall, the year ends with the lowest 12-month job-cut total since 1997, according to the latest report from global outplacement consultancy Challenger, Gray & Christmas, Inc.

The 32,556 planned job cuts announced last month were 43 percent fewer than the 57,081 November cuts.  The December total was 22 percent lower than a year ago, when employers announced 41,785 in the final month of the year.  The only month in 2012 to see fewer job cuts than December was August, when job cuts totaled 32,239.

Despite the December decline, planned layoffs in the fourth quarter were up 33 percent from the previous quarter.  Employers announced 137,361 job cuts in the final three months of year, compared to 102,910 in the third quarter.  The third-quarter total was the lowest quarterly total since 81,568 job cuts were announced in the second quarter of 2000. Continue Reading

Bad Bosses Beware: Strengthening Economy Causing More Employees to Quit

Amy Kaminski of Compdata Surveys

As the national unemployment rate remained above eight percent for the majority of this year, turnover rates are beginning to inch up. The average total turnover rate reported for employers from 2011 was 15.2 percent, according to the 2012 BenchmarkPro survey results. That’s up slightly from 14.4 percent reported a year ago. Voluntary turnover rates were reported at 9.8 percent, up from 9.1 percent last year.

“Voluntary turnover rates were trending downward for several years, but the numbers are beginning to edge up again,” said Amy Kaminski, director of marketing for Compdata Surveys. “This is likely because employees are beginning to feel more comfortable about re-entering the job market as the economy shows small signs of improvement.” Continue Reading

Despite Hurricane Sandy, No Change to Number of Job Openings

There were 3.7 million job openings on the last business day of October, little changed from September, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. The hires rate (3.2 percent) and separations rate (3.1 percent) were also little changed in October. This release includes estimates of the number and rate of job openings, hires, and separations for the nonfarm sector by industry and by geographic region.

Job Openings

The number of job openings in October was 3.7 million, essentially unchanged from September. The number of openings was little changed in all industries except construction, manufacturing, and accommodation and food services, which increased. The number of openings was also little changed in all four regions in October. The level of total nonfarm job openings in October was up from 2.4 million at the end of the recession in June 2009. (Recession dates are determined by the National Bureau of Economic Research.)

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Despite Hurricane Sandy, Jobs Up 146,000 and Unemployment Down From 7.9 to 7.7%

Total nonfarm payroll employment rose by 146,000 in November, and the unemployment rate edged down to 7.7 percent, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Employment increased in retail trade, professional and business services, and health care.

Hurricane Sandy made landfall on the Northeast coast on October 29th, causing severe damage in New Jersey, New York, and other states. Nevertheless, the BLS survey response rates in the affected states were within normal ranges. Its analysis suggests that Hurricane Sandy did not substantively impact the national employment and unemployment estimates for November.
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18 Fields Likely to Produce Most Jobs in 2013

Matt Ferguson, CEO of Careerbuilder

A newly released study by Economic Modeling Specialists (EMSI) provides some interesting insights into the fields likely to produce the most new jobs in 2013.

“Where the U.S. will produce the most jobs in 2013 is likely to follow growth patterns of the last few years,” said Matt Ferguson, CEO of CareerBuilder. “It’s no surprise that technology and engineering occupations comprise six of the top ten positions on our list, but workers should also see more opportunities in production-related fields, marketing, healthcare and financial services. The competition for educated, specialized labor has intensified as market demands increase in both the manufacturing and services sectors.”

Occupations requiring bachelor degrees that have produced the most jobs post-recession include the following: Continue Reading