The staffing outlook among L.A. area employers shows that layoffs may hit a five-year low during the second quarter, according to a survey released Tuesday from Manpower Group.
The Minneapolis staffing company’s quarterly survey of 143 employers in Los Angeles and Orange counties found that 13 percent plan to hire personnel, while 1 percent of employers plan to lay people off.
Hiring activity is expected to slow during the quarter, down from 14 percent of companies in the first quarter and 16 percent a year ago. Some of this slowdown might reflect uncertainty over sequestration budget cuts; the survey was taken in mid-January, about six weeks before the sequestration deadline.
But this is offset by a plunge in the percentage of employers who plan to lay people off to a five-year low of 1 percent.
For the Los Angeles region, the industries with the brightest outlook for hiring during the second quarter are leisure/hospitality and transportation/utilities.
Nationwide, 18 percent of 18,000 employers surveyed plan to hire, while 5 percent plan layoffs.