Employers are beginning to hire again with 37% of firms with the National Association for Business Economics reporting that they are planning to add staff in the next six months, up from 29% in January and just 16% a year ago, the association said Monday.
Perhaps even more encouraging: only 3% expect to have layoffs or lose positions through attrition compared to 7% in January and 11% in April 2009.
In terms of current staffing, 22% of the employers said headcount is rising compared to 13% in January and 14% a year ago. Hiring hit bottom last July with only 6% of employers saying they would add jobs.
On the other side, 13% had cut staff or reduced head count by attrition versus 28% in January and 39% in April 2009. (Click on chart to enlarge. Blue shaded areas represent recessions.)
"After more than two years of job losses, job creation increased in the first quarter of 2010, suggesting a better outlook for hiring over the next six months," said William Strauss of the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago.