Mild hiring climate expected
Calgary survey finds few firms plan to recruit
Calgary area employers expect a mild hiring climate for the first quarter of 2013, according to the latest Manpower Employment Outlook Survey released today.
Survey data reveal 16 per cent of employers plan to hire for the upcoming quarter (January to March), while six per cent anticipate cutbacks, said Randy Upright, chief executive of Manpower’s Alberta region.
“I think what we’re seeing right now is employers are exercising a lot of caution as we move into the first quarter of 2013 that they certainly weren’t exercising as we moved into the first quarter of 2012,” said Upright.
He said economic uncertainty is the result of some challenges in the global economy.
“(Hiring intention) is definitely on the mild, weak side compared to what we have seen at other times,” said Upright. “I think if we didn’t have these external economic factors we wouldn’t be seeing as much caution.”
According to Statistics Canada, in November the unemployment rate in the Calgary census metropolitan area remained the same as in October at 4.7 per cent.
Nationally, with seasonal variations removed from the data, Manpower’s Net Employment Outlook of 13 per cent is a one percentage point drop from the same time last year.
The survey of over 1,900 Canadian employers found 13 per cent planned to increase their payrolls in the first quarter of 2013, while seven per cent anticipated cutbacks.
“Job seekers in all regions except Quebec are likely to benefit from a hopeful hiring climate from January through March, with employers in Western Canada and the Maritimes reporting the most positive outlook,” said Byrne Luft, vice-president of operations for Manpower Canada.