Your odds of finding or retaining a permanent job in the Hudson Valley
during the first quarter of 1999 are considerably better than they were at
this time last year. So much so, in fact, that local employers lead New York
state in projected hiring.
With 43 percent of employers expecting to increase their staff in
January,
February and March, Ulster County leads the state in this category,
according
to a report from Manpower Inc., a staffing services firm. Twenty percent of
those surveyed said they expect cutbacks and 34 percent, the lowest in the
state for this category, said they expect no change. The net difference for
Ulster is 23 percent.
"Here in Ulster County the (job) outlook is pretty good," said Len
Cane,
president of the Ulster County Chamber of Commerce. "Smaller companies are
gearing up and are looking for people right now." Unemployment is low, "so
it's hard to find people. The outlook for hiring is good, but we've got to
come up with the employees."
Prospects in Dutchess are good but somewhat quieter. "A year ago in
Dutchess County you have a -13 percent (net difference)," said Jim Challen,
district manager of the mid-Hudson branch of Manpower. The net difference in
Dutchess for the upcoming quarter is 13 percent, with 16 percent of surveyed
employers expecting to increase staff and only 3 percent planning to cut
back.
Eighty-one percent see no change, making Dutchess the second-most stable
area,
behind Long Island's 84 percent.
"You've done a complete 180," said Challen. "This is a very good
report.
It doesn't seem to be quite as active as the Orange or Ulster reports, but
it's still very positive."
Every quarter, Manpower Inc. conducts the Employment Outlook Survey. The
statistics gathered are based on telephone interviews with 16,000 public and
private employers in 473 U.S. cities.
The most significant aspect of the survey to Challen is the net
difference
between the percentage of employers expecting to increase staff and the
percentage of those planning cuts. He also said that because hiring
practices
tend to be seasonal, the results of the survey should be compared with the
same quarter of the previous year, or to the preceding quarter.
Factories are holding their own, said Harold King, executive director of
the Council of Industry of Southeastern New York. "For every Stainless
Design
that cuts back to just a few people, there's an Imperial Schrade," he said.
Ellenville's Schrade has just topped 700, he said.
