Hardest-to-fill tech job is software developer, report says

Hiring is expected to increase in the first half of 2016 but many critical technology positions are in high demand and hard to fill, according to the January Dice Report released today.

Demand for tech professionals with security expertise also continues to rise. It now ranks third in the ten roles and...

Survey says 22% of US adults offered services in on-demand economy

Almost one-quarter, 22%, of the adult population have worked or offered services in the on-demand economy, while 42% have used at least one on-demand economy service, according to a national survey conducted by research firm Penn Schoen Berland.

The survey’s key findings include:

• 51% of those who...

Express says US must tackle falling labor force participation

Express Employment Professionals is raising concerns about the US’ falling labor force participation rate in a new report released today.

The labor force participation rate hit 62.5% in November and 62.6% in December, according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. Express, one of the largest staffing...

Insperity accepts $143.1 million in modified Dutch auction

Professional employer organization Insperity Inc. (NYSE: NSP) accepted an aggregate purchase price of approximately $143.1 million in its “modified Dutch auction” tender offer ended Jan. 7.

Insperity accepted for purchase about 3 million shares of its common stock at a purchase price of $47.50 per...

PeopleScout acquires Aon Hewitt’s RPO business

PeopleScout Inc., the RPO group subsidiary of TrueBlue Inc. (NYSE: TBI), acquired the RPO business of Aon Hewitt. The two firms also established a long-term relationship to connect PeopleScout’s recruiting services firm and Aon Hewitt’s broader talent solutions in assessment, employee engagement...

US job openings edge up in November

The number of US job openings in November edged up 1.5% from October to more than 5.4 million, according to seasonally adjusted numbers released today by the US Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Job openings increased in healthcare and social assistance, and in the South over the month; they decreased in retail...

Page Group North America gross profit rises 23% on strong US results

Page Group, a London-based professional staffing firm, reported fourth-quarter gross profit in its North America unit rose 23% year over year, with the US up 27% on strong performance from New York.

Trading conditions in Canada remained challenging with growth of 1%.

Fourth-quarter gross profit for Page...

Impellam reports results in line with expectations, appoints new joint corporate broker

Impellam Group plc, one of the world’s largest staffing firms, expects full-year results for 2016 will be in line with expectations when preliminary results are announced March 3.

Impellam also announced the appointment of Investec Bank plc as joint corporate broker, effective immediately.

Impellam noted...

MRINetwork names new president

MRINetwork, a subsidiary of CDI Corp. (NYSE: CDI), appointed Jill Albrinck as its new president, effective immediately. She replaces John McDonald, who assumed the role in 2014.

Albrinck previously was COO of DeVry University, a private higher-education provider with 90 campuses across the US and Canada,...

‘Gig’ is semantic shell game — Staffing quote of the week

The earliest example of the word “gig” found by Geoffrey Nunberg, a linguist who teaches at the UC Berkeley School of Information, is from a 1952 piece by Jack Kerouac about his gig as a part-time brakeman for the Southern Pacific railroad.

“There's kind of a semantic shell game here, as the promoters...