US temporary staffing revenue rose a median 3% year over year in September — a deceleration from 6% in August — among staffing firms taking part in Staffing Industry Analysts’ monthly Pulse survey.

“Median year-over-year revenue growth rates were slower in office/clerical and industrial staffing than in the professional skill segments,” Research Analyst Sree Thiyagarajan said. “Several staffing firms commented that hurricane disruptions were a negative impact on their results in September.”

Median year-over-year revenue growth accelerated in the following staffing segments in September from August:

• Locum tenens: to 12% from 6%
• IT: to 9% from 5%
• Marketing/creative: to 5% from 1%
• Clinical/scientific: to 3% from 1%
• Travel nursing: to 9% from 7%
• Office/clerical: to 2% from 1%

Median year-over-year revenue growth decelerated in the following staffing segments in September from August:

• Per diem nursing: to 6% from 13%
• Allied healthcare: to 1% from 6%
• Industrial: to 2% from 6%
• Legal: to 2% from 5%

The median year-over-year growth rate was unchanged in the engineering/design staffing segment at 10% and in finance/accounting staffing at 3%.

In other findings:

• The net proportion of firms reporting an increasing trend in new orders fell to 36% in September, down from 39% in August and slightly less than the last 12-month average of 38% for this metric. The net proportion of firms reporting an increase in new orders rose in three categories — industrial, manufacturing and healthcare — but decreased in IT.
• Average sales difficulty edged up to 2.77 in September from 2.73 in August (on a five-point scale, with five being most difficult), while average recruiting difficulty edged down to 3.11 from 3.16 in the survey overall. IT staffing firms reported a slight decrease in difficulty levels for both sales and recruiting. For firms supplying the healthcare industry, both average sales difficulty and recruiting difficulty levels increased. Industrial staffing firms and firms supplying the manufacturing industry reported a slight increase in recruiting difficulty, while the sales difficulty decreased.

Pulse Survey results are based on a monthly survey of US staffing firms. Data from the month of September was submitted by individuals from 162 staffing companies. SIA corporate members can view a high-level summary of the report, and the full report is available to participants.

It’s free to take part, and the next Pulse Survey is currently underway. Participate now by selecting this link.