23% US employers plan to hire in next three months

Many American employers are planning to hire in the next three months indicating a gradual improvement in the job market, says a study.

Out of 2,700 hiring managers, about 23 per cent of them are planning to add full-time or permanent headcount in the second quarter of the year (April to June period), according to analysis by online jobsite CareerBuilder.

While 8 per cent of employers are considering to downsize staff. Moreover, 64 per cent of employers anticipate no change and 6 per cent are undecided on the hiring mode during the quarter, it added.

This is the third consecutive quarter where more hiring managers are projecting to increase headcount in the next three months while fewer are expecting job cuts, the report said.

"The number of job listings on CareerBuilder.Com have increased both sequentially and year over year in 2010. The recovery in the job market will take some time as employers face new market realities and gauge demand, but we expect to see gradual improvement throughout the year," CareerBuilder CEO Matt Ferguson said.

According to the survey, about 23 per cent of the employers reported they increased their full-time, permanent staff in the first quarter of 2010.

Meanwhile, 40 per cent of employers expect that salary levels would remain same in the second quarter while 37 per cent expect an increase of 3 per cent or less in the same period.

The report also highlighted some other trends in the job market during the second quarter of 2010 like some employers are planning to hire interns to manage cost effectively and some are re-evaluating their current staff in order to replace lower-performing employees with higher-performers.

Besides, 25 per cent of employers expect to employ contract workers in the second quarter to help fill productivity gaps. While 13 per cent said they are likely to hire these workers on a permanent basis.

The survey was conducted online within the US by Harris Interactive on behalf of CareerBuilder from February 10 to March 2, 2010.