As Temperature Rises, So Does Competition for Jobs, Survey Shows

Posted by: Mary Lorenz on May 12, 2010

Despite a recovering job market, there appears to be no year-over-year increase in employers’ summer hiring plans this year, according to CareerBuilder’s Annual Summer Hiring Forecast, released today.

According to the survey of more than 2,700 employers nationwide, 22 percent of employers plan to hire seasonal workers this summer, in line with estimates from 2009. Fifteen percent of employers say they are planning to hire the same amount of summer workers as last year, while 5 percent plan to add fewer.

“While companies have begun to take steps in the right direction toward rebuilding their workforces, their summer hiring plans clearly show that they are still waiting to see what the future brings before they move forward with recruitment,” said Rosemary Haefner, CareerBuilder’s vice president of human resources, in the press release.

Summer plans? Of those employers who say they plan to hire seasonal workers this summer,

• 71 percent will offer the same pay to seasonal workers this year as they did last year, while 14 percent will offer more…
• …and 57 percent will consider bringing these employees on full-time in the fall.

What’s a seasonal worker worth? Here’s a breakdown of the compensation offerings from employers this summer:

• 43 percent of employers are offering $10 or more per hour
• 30 percent will offer between $8 and $10 per hour
• 9 percent will offer less than $7 per hour
• 6 percent will offer $20 or more per hour

Who’s hiring? Across all industries, those doing the most hiring include:

• Retail – 40 percent
• Hospitality – 33 percent
• Office support – 28 percent
• Customer service – 21 percent
• Landscape/maintenance – 16 percent
• Research – 13 percent
• Sales – 12 percent
• Restaurant/food service – 12 percent