JOB MARKET Experts expect active hiring season
AMBER HYLAND
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
YOUNGSTOWN -- Area businesses and job experts agree that the Youngstown-Warren job market is expected to be upbeat and steady from July to September.
A quarterly Manpower Employment Outlook Survey shows employers expect to hire at an active pace in the Youngstown-Warren area, with 20 percent planning to hire more employees.
Seventy-three percent of employers predicted no change for the third quarter of the year. No one surveyed predicted a decrease in jobs, but 7 percent did not know what their hiring plans would be.
According to the survey, "Employers are more confident about hiring than they were a year ago, when 17 percent of companies surveyed thought employment increases were likely, and 3 percent intended to cut back," said Dennis Yurko, Manpower spokesman.
Don Curry of the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services said the survey is "usually very accurate."
He said the reason for the strong market prediction is that the market follows a cycle, going into "hibernation for the winter and picking up in the spring."
Regional Chamber analysis
The Regional Chamber looked at a report on the state of the economy and job market called Ohio Leading Indicators that covered the April-to-June time frame.
Reid Dulberger, executive vice president of the chamber, said the reports reflect what Manpower is finding,
Dulberger said his staff has been getting feedback from local employers who feel more confident and optimistic about the national state of the economy than they did five years ago.
He added that these employers are not solely tied to the local market.
Curry said he sees the biggest job growth in the health care, retail and electronic areas.
Job prospects
According to the Manpower survey, job prospects in the area appear best for durable goods manufacturing, wholesale/retail trade and services.
Hiring in construction, nondurable goods manufacturing, transportation/public utilities, finance/insurance/real estate, education and public administration is not expected to change, the survey reported.
Curry said the summer job market is a "mixed bag" because many students are looking for summer jobs or first jobs.
"It's not spectacular, but it's steady and solid. We're not losing jobs," Curry said.
Across Ohio, 29 percent of employers surveyed expected an increase in hires; 60 percent predicted no change; and 7 percent expected a decrease.
Nationally, the survey reported that 31 percent of U.S. employers expect an increase in hires; 57 percent predict no change; 6 percent are unsure; and 6 percent expect a decrease in the number hired.
Manpower Inc. is a company that specializes in permanent, temporary and contract recruitment, employee assessment, organizational consulting services and professional finance services.