HIRING EXPECTED TO PICK UP IN NEW YEAR

It could be a happy new year for anyone seeking a Dayton-area job.

Hiring in early 2018 should happen at a promising clip, according to the newest quarterly hiring survey from Manpower of Dayton released Tuesday.

Among employers surveyed, 17 percent plan to hire more employees from January through March, according to survey results.

Five percent plan to cut payrolls, while 71 percent of employers expect to maintain current staff levels and 7 percent indicate they are not sure of their plans.

That yields what Manpower calls a “net employment outlook” of 12 percent — the percentage of employers planning to add workers minus the percentage planning to shrink their workforces.

“Employers in the Dayton (metro statistical area) anticipate a steady hiring pace compared to Q4 2017 when the net employment outlook was 14 percent,” said Tom Maher, chief executive of Manpower of Dayton. “At this time last year, employers expected less hiring activity when the outlook was 5 percent.”

In coming weeks, the best job prospects appear to be in construction, transportation and utilities, wholesale and retail trade, education and health, and leisure and hospitality, Manpower said.

But employers in professional and business services plan to cut staff, while hiring in durable goods manufacturing, nondurable goods manufacturing, information, financial activities, other services and government is expected to remain unchanged, the survey found.

Nationally, of more than 11,500 employers surveyed, 21 percent expect to add to their workforces, and 5 percent expect to cut in the first quarter next year.

Seventy-one percent of employers expect no change, and the remaining 3 percent are undecided.