Staffing Industry Trends: Jobs Hold Steady in December

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Staffing Industry Trends 2013Here’s some good news for the staffing industry: according to the recently released U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) data, not only did the employment rate hold steady in December at 7.8%, but staffing industry trends also showed little change from the month of November into the new year. What’s so good about that? We, staffing industry trends have been on a roll and the roll does not appear to be ending.

The BLS figures indicate that staffing firms created more than 150,000 new jobs in 2012 (an average of 12,800/month) of the 1,836,000 total new non-farming jobs (153,000/month). That’s about 8% of all the new jobs created, even though the industry represents just below 2% of total employment. In fact, based on a year-to-year comparison, temporary help employment was 6.4% higher in December 2012 than in December 2011. Not bad!

What’s behind the staffing industry trends?

There are a number of reasons for the staffing industry’s continuing boom. Primary would seem to be more widespread adoption of flexible work force solutions as a means to increase competitiveness and productivity. It’s a strategy that drives staffing industry trends upward.

The new year looks promising.

Although the economy appears stuck on a shallow growth trajectory, employers continue to bring on greater numbers of contract workers. A steady supply of potential employees also apprears willing to accept these temporary roles. Employment growth in health care, food services, construction, and manufacturing all encourage the adoption of flexible and temporary employment strategies.

So despite the dark cloud looming over the heads of many Americans, the BLS statistics suggest continued overall growth and the staffing industry trends suggest even more robust industry expansion. Given these prevailing growth trends in the staffing industry, we believe anyone already in the arena—as well as anyone considering entering the arena—should feel encouraged. Even with the ongoing fiscal cliff debates, we can take many positives into the new year. It is indeed a good time to grow with staffing.