Manpower Survey Suggests Texas is Hiring

Manpower says Texas employers expect to hire at a faster pace than the national average in the second quarter. Doug Karr is the company’s Metro Houston regional director.

“The basic statistic that we look at is net employment outlook, and that’s the difference between those employers that are looking to increase their staff count versus those that are looking to decrease. And across the U.S., that net employment outlook is a +8, meaning that there are 8% more of those employers that are looking to increase as opposed to decrease their staff count. Texas is at a +12, and Houston is at a +12, which is one of the stronger markets in the U.S.”

Karr notes the recession has led factories to further automate their operations. That’s leading to what he calls a “talent mismatch.”

“It can be frustrating for job seekers right now, because they can see that the jobs are starting to open up, but they may not have the skill sets to fill some of those jobs.”

Karr says that some employers are responding to the shortage in skilled workers by hiring first and paying for technical retraining.