EMPLOYMENT
“We’re seeing some consistency in hiring in central Ohio. Companies have projects to do. They are continuing to hire to get the work done,” said Pam Kerstetter, managing director of Experis, a professionalservices company that is part of Manpower.
Kerstetter said the region’s low unemployment rate, 3.7 percent in December, the most recent figures available, is driving hiring.
“The labor market is tightening up. Companies are having to make hiring decisions quicker,” she said.
The jobless rate is especially tight in technology, Kerstetter said.
Manpower said the best job prospects in central Ohio are in broad swath of sectors: construction, retail, professional and business services, private education and health care, leisure and hospitality, and government.
Hiring in manufacturing, finance, and transportation and utilities is expected to hold steady.
Of the state’s metropolitan areas, Cincinnati has the strongest outlook for the quarter with a 24-point spread between hiring and firing. That spread is 8 points higher than the year-ago period.
For the state, the spread is 17 points, 1 point below a year ago.