Hiring Plans Up In Second Half of 2013

A majority of hiring managers, 52%, plan to hire more professionals in the 2nd half of 2013 than they did in the 1st half, up from 46% who said they planned to increase hiring in the first 6 months of 2013, according to a national survey conducted by job board operator Dice Holdings Inc.

The survey also found that 39% of hiring managers and recruiters say voluntary departures have increased this year — motivated by increased salaries, better career opportunities elsewhere, and better job title or promotion — up from 32% who reported increasing quits 6 months ago.

51% of the respondents with less than 50 employees said their company was not making plans to keep headcount below 50 employees because of the Health Care for America Plan, compared to 17% of small company respondents that were taking steps to stay under that level.  However, when looking at shifts in the types of hiring in 2013, employers, regardless of size, anticipate using more contractors, temporary staffing and part-time employees than 6 months ago.

On sequestration, 64% said the mandatory spending cuts had no impact on their business, 15% suffering a direct effect and 21% reported an indirect impact.

“Hiring managers and recruiters are perpetually more optimistic about the 2nd half of the year, but this is the first notable increase we’ve seen in confidence from professionals,” said Scot Melland, chairman, president and CEO of Dice Holdings. “That said, we will likely continue to have modest job creation for the balance of the year due to slow economic growth, continued challenges in finding qualified talent and the negative impacts from sequestration that go beyond defense to key sectors like healthcare, technology, consulting, education, non-profits and manufacturing.”

Dice Holdings surveyed U.S. companies, government entities and recruiting firms nationwide from May 14 to May 17, 2013.  More than 1,100 hiring professionals responded to the survey.