Globe Newswire (04/13/21)

Demand for temporary workers in the U.S. is expected to increase 45.0% on a seasonally adjusted basis for the 2021 second quarter, when compared with the same period in 2020, according to the Palmer Forecast by G. Palmer & Associates. The Palmer Forecast indicated an 8.6% decrease in temporary help for the 2021 first quarter. Actual results as reported by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics came in better than anticipated, with a decline of just 6.0%, largely reflecting lower unemployment rates and faster job growth, led by hospitality and leisure, but also supported across the board in the business services, education, health care, warehousing, retail, construction, and manufacturing sectors.

Temporary help declined by 800 jobs in March from February, and was down 4.3% from a year ago, but is rapidly improving as compared with a decline of 7.8% in February versus the previous year. There has been a strong rebound in the 2021 first quarter, with 149,000 temporary help jobs added, or 49,700 on average per month. According to BLS, 332,000 temporary jobs were lost in 2020, the second straight year of declines, or an average job loss of 27,750 per month.

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