It's steady as she goes for the Utah employment outlook, according to a poll released Monday by Manpower Inc.
But the same poll shows that the national job market isn't looking as good.
Nearly three-quarters of respondents in the Salt Lake area indicated they would maintain current employment levels from October through December, the poll showed. Another 23 percent said they intended to hire more workers, while three percent said they expected cutbacks.
Nationally, 24 percent of employers say they plan to add staff during the fourth quarter of this year, compared with 32 percent the same time last year, according to the Employment Outlook Survey by the Milwaukee-based temporary staffing agency. The survey reflects telephone interviews with nearly 16,000 private employers in 485 American markets.
"The key segments of durable and nondurable goods manufacturing project year-end hiring at levels approaching those experienced in the recession years of 1981 and 1991," said Jeff Joerres, Manpower's chairman and chief executive.
The Manpower report said 11 percent of the employers surveyed nationwide expect to cut jobs, and 65 percent see no change or are undecided. That compares with 7 percent saying a year ago they planned to cut jobs and 61 percent expecting to stay the same or undecided.
Removing the impact of seasonal variations, the new figures showed a "modest but sequential" decline that began during the first quarter of 2001 and has continued since.
For the Salt Lake area, the survey said new jobs are expected in manufacturing, transportation/public utilities, wholesale/retail trade, education and services.
For the same period last year, Manpower reported 33 percent of respondents in this area anticipated adding workers, while 13 percent expected reductions. And one quarter ago, 27 percent of employers polled said they expected to add to their workforce. About 13 percent said they would cut back.
Ken Jensen, senior economist with the Utah Department of Workforce Services, said though it is difficult to predict what the next quarter will hold, he was encouraged by Manpower's numbers.
"I think it is encouraging that only a very small fraction are looking at cutting back," Jensen said. "But I think we have seen some fairly unusual cutbacks in the last six months by employers throughout the state. And, although that may be a small fraction of the total number of employers in Utah, it has been what we would call an unusual level of layoffs that we're observing. So if Manpower had predicted that one, it certainly would have lent a lot of credence to this report.
"There's still not a lot of hiring going on, and you wouldn't anticipate it in the current climate," he said. "But the fact that they're not anticipating much of a need to cut back is encouraging."
Contributing: The Associated Press
E-MAIL: jnii@desnews.com