Media Release
Manpower, Level 22, Darling Park 2, 201 Sussex Street Sydney. NSW Australia 2000
Manpower Employment Outlook Survey
Under embargo until 0:01, 10th June 2008 Local Time
Demand for staff in Victoria shows signs of softening
as consumer confidence drops.
The Manpower Employment Outlook Survey released today, indicates the
employment prospects for job seekers in Victoria may well be softer than they have
been for the past 18 months as more business leaders intend to hire less new staff.
The survey, which was part of a broader survey of 2,658 employers across Australia,
revealed that an increasing number of employers in Victoria are intending to hold the
line on their staff levels for the next quarter. The levels of demand are considerably
lower than the peaks of late 2007, and in fact have dropped back to the same low
levels reported in the first quarter of 2007.
The Victorian employment market shows a softer hiring intention in the July –
September quarter of 2008, with a Net Employment Outlook of +20% compared to
+30% in the last quarter, a decline of 10 percentage points.
According to Stephen Hinch, General Manager Marketing & Communications,
Manpower, Australia and New Zealand, “This softening in intention to hire new
workers may not signal a slow down in net growth. The 10 point decline in hiring
intentions may well be indicating a decline in pent up demand that was created by
internal mobility together with shortages which had contributed to over 36,000 unfilled
vacancies in the state”.
“This softer but continuing demand must still be balanced against the tight labour
supply that exists across Australia as the skills shortage is creating real structural
changes to the workforce already. Business leaders must continue to rethink their
strategies not only to attract but more importantly to retain the right talent, as many
jobs are still being filled through the mobility of the labour market.” Hinch said.
“There is a general softening in hiring confidence in all states, including Western
Australia and Queensland, however we are now moving into a period where we have
increasing numbers of skilled workers to replace each year as they retire making it
much more important for us all to take a longer term approach”. Hinch noted.
-End-
For further information please contact
Stephen Hinch, Phone – 02 9263 8644, Mobile – 0488 495 270, shinch@manpower.com.au
- Continued -
Manpower, Level 22, Darling Park 2, 201 Sussex Street Sydney. NSW Australia 2000
Manpower Fact Sheet
The next Manpower Employment Outlook Survey will be released on the 9th of September
2008 to report hiring expectations for the third quarter of 2008. The Manpower Employment
Outlook Survey is available free of charge to the public through their local Manpower
representative in participating countries. You can download a copy of the Australian report in
Note to Editors
Full survey results for each of the 32 countries and territories included in this quarter’s survey,
plus regional and global comparisons, can be found in the Manpower Press Room at
to be downloaded for use in publication or broadcast from the Manpower website at
Note that in Quarter 2 of 2008, the survey adopted the TRAMO-SEATS model for seasonal
adjustment of data. As a result, you may notice some seasonally adjusted data points change
slightly from previous reports. This model is recommended by the Eurostat department of the
European Union and the European Central Bank and is widely used internationally.
About the Survey
The Manpower Employment Outlook Survey is conducted quarterly to measure employers’
intentions to increase or decrease the number of employees in their workforce during the next
quarter. It is the most extensive forward-looking survey of its kind, unparalleled in its size,
scope, longevity and area of focus. The Survey has been running for more than 45 years and
is one of the most trusted surveys of employment activity in the world. The Manpower
Employment Outlook Survey is based on interviews with more than 55,000 public and private
employers worldwide and is considered a highly respected economic indicator.
The Manpower Employment Outlook Survey is currently available for 32 countries and
territories: Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, China, Costa Rica, Czech
Republic, France, Germany, Greece, Guatemala, Hong Kong, India, Ireland, Italy, Japan,
Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Peru, Poland, Romania, Singapore, Spain,
South Africa, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, the United Kingdom and the United States. The
program began in the United States and Canada in 1962, and the United Kingdom was added
in 1966. Mexico and Ireland launched the survey in 2002, and 13 additional countries were
added to the program in 2003. New Zealand joined the program in 2004, China, India,
Switzerland and Taiwan were added in 2005, and Argentina, Peru, Costa Rica and South
Africa joined in 2006. The Czech Republic, Greece, Guatemala, Poland and Romania joined
in 2008. For more information, visit the Manpower Inc. website at www.manpower.com and
enter the Research Centre.
About Manpower Inc.
Manpower Inc. (NYSE: MAN) is a world leader in the employment services industry; creating
and delivering services that enable its clients to win in the changing world of work.
Celebrating its 60th anniversary in 2008, the $21 billion company offers employers a range of
services for the entire employment and business cycle including permanent, temporary and
contract recruitment; employee assessment and selection; training; outplacement;
outsourcing and consulting. Manpower's worldwide network of 4,500 offices in 80 countries
and territories enables the company to meet the needs of its 400,000 clients per year,
including small and medium size enterprises in all industry sectors, as well as the world's
largest multinational corporations. The focus of Manpower's work is on raising productivity
through improved quality, efficiency and cost-reduction across their total workforce, enabling
clients to concentrate on their core business activities. Manpower Inc. operates under five
brands: Manpower, Manpower Professional, Elan, Jefferson Wells and Right Management.
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