Manpower Forecast of 2011 Hiring Plans

Seasonally adjusted data for the United States indicates the most optimistic first-quarter hiring sentiment in three years; yet 73 percent of employers indicate they will keep staff levels unchanged.

While we're seeing positive signals in the data, only time will tell if we've reached the inflection point in the U.S. labor market recovery, Manpower says.

To be sure, by formal definitions, and by some, not all data, the U.S. economy is in recovery mode. Sooner or later, the U.S. economy always recovers, with or without external "help." But it is some measure of the tenor of the times that the "most optimistic" forecast has 73 percent of survey respondents not doing anything about investing in growth, at least to the extent that hiring people is required for growth.

All of that is important for all firms in the communications and entertainment businesses, and most consumers, of course.

Manpower Inc. - New-Year Hiring Plans Indicate Progress Toward Recovery in World's Largest Economies According to Quarter 1 2011 Global Manpower Employment Outlook Survey