Small business owners will slow the rate of new hires and maintain current compensation levels in the fourth quarter, according to a new business confidence survey released today by Insperity Inc. (NYSE: NSP), the largest professional employer organization in the U.S.

“Survey responses indicate that business owners are returning to more cautious management strategies to safely execute their short-term and long-term business plans,” said Insperity Chairman and CEO Paul Sarvadi. “Regardless of industry, businesses continue to balance the current challenging risk-reward ratio in creative ways to serve clients and grow profits.”

• 26 percent of respondents said they are adding employees in the fourth quarter, down from 40 percent in last quarter’s survey
• 68 percent are maintaining current staffing levels, up from 56 percent in July and 63 percent last fall
• 5 percent are laying off employees, up from 4 percent last quarter but a decrease from 9 percent at this time last year

Seventy-one percent of respondents plan to pay their employees at their current rate, 17 percent plan to increase pay, 11 percent are unsure and 1 percent plan to cut pay.

The survey also found that, compared to this time last year, employee pay rose 2.9 percent, bonuses fell 11.7 percent and commissions increased 4.0 percent.

Insperity conducted the survey from Oct. 8 to 10. It included CEOs, CFOs and other executives in a variety of industries from its base of approximately 5,500 U.S. workforce optimization clients.