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More US employers to hire temps, best jobs outlook in nine years

January 05, 2015

More US employers plan to hire temporary workers in 2015 than planned such hires heading into 2014, according to CareerBuilder’s job forecast for 2015. The forecast’s survey found 46 percent of employers plan to hire temporary or contract workers in 2015, up from 42 percent in last year’s survey.

In addition, 56 percent of employers hiring temporary workers plan to transition some into full-time, permanent employees.

The survey also found that 36 percent of employers plan to add full-time, permanent headcount in 2015, up significantly from 24 percent who planned to hire in 2014 and the best outlook from the survey since 2006. Nine percent plan to decrease staff levels — down from 13 percent last year — while 48 percent anticipate no change and 8 percent are unsure of plans.

“Hiring in 2014 has been broad-based, including encouraging activity among small businesses and hard-hit sectors like manufacturing and construction,” said Matt Ferguson, CEO of CareerBuilder. “The amount of companies planning to hire in 2015 is up 12 percentage points over last year, setting the stage for a more competitive environment for recruiters that may lend itself to some movement in wages.”

According to the survey, hiring for science, technology, engineering and math occupations will continue to be strong with 31 percent of hiring managers planning to create jobs in these areas over the next 12 months, up from 26 percent last year.

The top five areas cited for hiring cited by hiring managers include:

  1. Sales: 36 percent
  2. Customer service: 33 percent
  3. Information technology: 26 percent
  4. Production: 26 percent
  5. Administrative: 22 percent

Companies also expect to add more headcount in emerging fields. Examples include:

  • Cloud, mobile or search technology
  • Cyber security
  • Managing and interpreting big data
  • Alternative energy sources
  • Anti-terrorism
  • Robotics

The survey found five trends to watch in 2015 include:

  1. Minimum wage increasing: Forty-five percent of employers expect to raise the minimum wage within their organizations in 2015. Of these employers, 53 percent will raise it by $2 or more per hour while 32 percent will raise it by $3 or more. Forty-seven percent will limit the increase to $1 or less. The majority of employers, 69 percent said they will pay $10 or more per hour, 39 percent will pay $12 or more and 18 percent will pay $15 or more.
  2. Small businesses ramping up: Twenty-nine percent of small businesses with 250 or fewer employees expect to add full-time, permanent employees, up from 22 percent last year. Seven percent will downsize, an improvement from 9 percent last year.
  3. Education requirements becoming stricter: Twenty-eight percent of companies say they’re now hiring workers with master’s degrees for positions that had been primarily held by workers with four-year degrees. Thirty-seven percent are now hiring workers with college degrees for those that had been primarily held by workers with high school diplomas, 65 percent of these employers attributed this to the skills required for positions evolving within their firms.
  4. Part-time jobs increasing: Twenty-three percent of employers expect to recruit part-time works over the next 12 months, up six percentage points over last year. While various factors will influence this trend, 14 percent of all employers stated they will likely hire more part-time workers in 2015 due to the Affordable Care Act.
  5. Cubicle walls coming down: Thirteen percent of employers reported that their companies are implementing an open space floor plan with no cubicle walls in 2015.

The survey was conducted online within the US by Harris Interactive on behalf of CareerBuilder among 2,192 hiring managers and human resource professionals. It was conducted between Nov. 4 and Dec. 2, 2014.