Hiring managers and human resource professionals plan to hire more temporary staff in the second half of 2017 compared to last year, according to CareerBuilder’s new mid-year 2017 US job forecast. The survey found 46% plan to hire temporary or contract staff in the second half of this year, up from the 32% who said the same in a separate survey for the second half of 2016.

CareerBuilder’s survey for the second half of this year also found 60% of employers plan to add full-time, permanent workers, up from 50% in last year’s mid-year survey. And 36% plan to add part-time employees, up from 29% in last year’s survey.

For the third quarter only, 50% of employers plan to hire temporary or contract workers, up from 37% last year. Forty-seven percent plan to add full-time, permanent employees, up from 34% last year. Seven percent expect to downsize staffs, relatively unchanged from 8% in last year’s third quarter; 43% percent anticipate no change and 3% are undecided.

“Events dominating national headlines have had a polarizing effect in the US, but most employers remain confident in their outlook for financial growth and plans for hiring,” said CareerBuilder CEO Matt Ferguson. “Job seekers stand to benefit not only from having more options, but also from the growing intensity in the competition for talent.”

Employers are moving quickly to recruit candidates and they are willing to pay more across job levels, according to Ferguson. “They are also placing a greater emphasis on candidates having a positive experience when they apply to their firms,” he said. “The current climate puts job seekers in a more advantageous position.”

Looking at a subset of human resources managers, the report found 72% feel they have to start paying higher wages because the market has become increasingly competitive for talent. The majority say this also applies to entry-level workers.

Among hiring managers and human resources managers surveyed, 53% plan to offer higher starting salaries for new employees over the next six months, a big jump from 39% in the same period last year; 32% plan to increase starting salaries on job offers by 5% or more. Two-thirds of employers, 66%, plan to increase compensation for current employees before year-end and 34% anticipate an increase of 5% or more.

Looking across industries, some of the most in-demand roles employers say they will be recruiting for during this timeframe are those tied to:

• Skilled trades: 15%
• Software as a service: 14%
• Cybersecurity: 13%
• Sales enablement: 13%
• Talent management: 13%
• Providing a good user experience: 12%
• Managing and interpreting Big Data: 11%
• Creating digital strategies: 11%
• Social marketing: 10%
• E-commerce: 10%
• Developing apps: 10%  
• Healthy living: 9%

Hot areas for hiring include:

• Information technology: 72%
• Manufacturing: 66%
• Healthcare: 64%
• Financial services: 62%

The survey was conducted online within the US by Harris Interactive on behalf of CareerBuilder among 2,369 hiring managers and human resources managers and 3,462 US employees. The survey was conducted between May 24 and June 16, 2017.