Professional and Commercial Staffing Remain Below Prior Year Levels

Introduction

Released weekly, the SIA | Bullhorn Staffing Indicator comprises two sets of analyses; a Year-over-Year comparison showing how the week that ended ten days ago (“last week measured”) compares to the same week 12 months previously and an indexed value that has been benchmarked against data from the week ending January 13^th, 2019.

Year-over-year changes for the week ending July 15th

Temporary staffing hours worked for the week ending July 15th (“last week measured”) were down -10% compared to the corresponding week a year ago, according to the Indicator.

Temporary staffing hours completed in commercial occupations (industrial and office/clerical) were down -10% year-over-year.

Temporary staffing hours worked in professional occupations (IT, healthcare, finance, engineering, etc.) were down -10% year-over-year.

On a week-over-week sequential basis, temporary staffing hours worked were up 2.9%, regaining some of the business lost during the week including the Independence Day Holiday. Commercial temporary staffing hours were up 2.7% while professional temporary staffing hours were up 3.4%.

Year-over-year change in US staffing, professional staffing, and commercial staffing

Commentary for the week ending July 15th

The Professional Staffing indexed value was 120 for the week ending July 15th, following readings of 116 and 128 in the prior two weeks (ending July 8th and July 1st, respectively.)

The Commercial Staffing indexed value was 74 for the same week, following values of 72 and 79 in the prior two weeks.

The US Staffing indexed value, weighted to reflect the US staffing industry mix of professional and commercial jobs, was 88 for the week ending July 15th, following readings of 85 and 94 in the prior two weeks, as shown in the graph below.

Values for US staffing, professional staffing, and commercial staffing

Staffing Industry Analysts’ Perspective

Hours worked in the US staffing industry in the week ending July 15th decreased by -10% year-over-year. Commercial staffing hours were down -10% while Professional staffing hours were down -10%.

Over the past five weeks, hours worked in Commercial occupations fell by an average year-over-year growth rate of -9%. Year-to-date, hours worked in Commercial occupations decreased by an average year-over-year growth rate of -11%. Over the year 2022, the average year-over-year growth rate for Commercial staffing hours was -1%.

Over the past five weeks, hours worked in Professional occupations decreased by an average year-over-year growth rate of -8%. Year-to-date, hours worked in Professional occupations decreased by an average year-over-year growth rate of -6%. Over the year 2022, the average year-over-year growth rate for Professional staffing hours was 12%.

Compared to the same week two years ago (in July 2021), Commercial staffing was down -11%, and Professional staffing was up 1%.

The year-over-year decline in the Indicator is roughly in line with the decline in temporary help employment as reported in the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ monthly Employment Situation reports. The July 2023 US Jobs Report (published on July 7th) indicated temporary help employment was down 3.1% from its average level in the first six months of 2023. That said, the US staffing industry is maintaining a high plateau that implies continuing and large opportunities for those staffing firms that have developed a competitive advantage. For more discussion of the market dynamics for each skill segment of staffing, see SIA’s latest forecast report, published on April 4^th.

About the SIA | Bullhorn Staffing Indicator

The SIA | Bullhorn Staffing Indicator is a unique tool for gauging near real time weekly trends in the volume of temporary staffing delivered by US staffing firms. Each week the Indicator reports data for the week that ended ten days prior to the release. It reflects weekly hours worked by temporary workers across a sample of staffing companies in the US that utilize Bullhorn’s technology solutions. The Indicator is weighted and benchmarked against US Bureau of Labor Statistics data to approximate the composition of the staffing industry by skill. While the indicator does not presume to perfectly reflect the entire universe of US staffing firms, it does represent a sizable sample of the US staffing industry, reflecting a wide range of occupations, client industry verticals, and geographic footprint that spans the country.

The Indicator can be used by staffing firms to benchmark their past and current performance, as well as a tool for forecasting near term industry trends and outlook.

As the US temporary staffing industry has often functioned as a co-incident indicator for the US labor market and economy, the SIA | Bullhorn Staffing Indicator is also useful for a broader audience of business leaders and investors who are seeking real-time insight.

The Indicator is a joint custom research effort between Bullhorn and industry advisor Staffing Industry Analysts.

Revisions and Technical notes on the SIA | Bullhorn Staffing Indicator  

We note the readings for the last 4 weeks are subject to revision and so should be viewed as preliminary, with the reading for the last recorded week the most likely to be revised in next week’s data release. For further information on how the Indicator has been created and detailed technical notes please refer to the methodology.

Underlying data for the SIA | Bullhorn Staffing Indicator can be downloaded using the below link:

SIA_Bullhorn_Indicator_20230725.xlsx 100.05 kB