Bright outlook for 2010: hiring rates set to increase 
Although the U.S. closed out 2009 with steep unemployment, some recently announced year-end data indicates that hiring is set to rebound in 2010. The encouraging news comes from this 2010 Job Forecast, which surveyed more than 2,700 hiring managers and human resource professionals about their staffing plans for the coming year.
While the forecast warns that employers are still keeping a cautious eye on the economy, their general reluctance to hire seems to be abating. Fully 20% of the employers surveyed said they plan to add permanent full-time employees in 2010 — up from 14% in 2009. Meanwhile, on the job-loss side, just 9% of the respondents said they plan to cut headcount, which is down from 16% in 2009.
These numbers, taken together, show plans for a 11% net gain in companies that are hiring full-time workers, which would bring welcome relief to our unemployment situation.
The sunny news is not confined to the U.S. According to The Wall Street Journal, a similar survey of our northern neighbor offered even better numbers: 29% of employers indicated that they plan to increase permanent full-time employment in 2010 — up from 18% in 2009. Only 9% plan to cut positions in 2010, making their “net hirers” number hit 20%.
Here are some other hiring practices the survey identified as growing trends for 2010:
- Rehiring laid-off workers
- Replacing low-performing employees
- Rehiring retirees / delaying retirement
- Continuing to hire contract workers to mitigate risk
- Increased need for bilingual workers
Not every field will see gains equally. Fields that the survey found were most likely to increase hiring were:
- 32% Information technology
- 27% Manufacturing
- 23% Financial services
- 22% Professional and business services
- 21% Sales
- 21% Healthcare
- 18% Transportation
- 15% Retail
In a related article, “The most secure jobs for 2010” describes careers likely to be in high demand in 2010 and beyond. While some made perfect sense — occupational therapist to our growing population of senior citizens is a needed specialty, and being a gas/electric/utilities strategic planning analyst in a time of energy crisis is surely secure — others came as an interesting surprise to me (for instance, I was not aware that there is a projected demand for more interior designers in spite of economic pressures, but the profession is on the rise). Check out the whole article to read their take on the most recession-proof jobs for the coming year.
What’s your sense of these numbers and trends? Will 2010 be the year we turn unemployment around? Do these “more companies hiring than firing” predictions seem feasible to you, based on what you’re seeing out in the field? Let us know in the comments, and please be sure to note your location, too. Not all regions are suffering unemployment equally, nor will they recover at the exact same pace. We’re interested in your eyewitness reports.
