Temp hiring falls for 6th straight month
Trend raises concern because last significant decline in temporary hires preceded a major drop in overall employment, according to a news report.
August 27 2007: 10:29 AM EDT
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- The number of temporary workers hired has fallen each of the past six months, and was down 2 percent in July from the start of the year, according to a news report Monday.
Major temporary employment agencies also saw revenue declines, said the Wall Street Journal. Manpower (Charts, Fortune 500), the world's second-largest staffing firm, saw U.S. revenue fall nearly 9 percent in the second quarter as demand fell, said the report.
New jobless claims fall in latest week
Kelly Services, which provides companies with clerical and industrial workers, saw a 6 percent decline in revenue in the quarter, according to the Journal.
In 2001, a fall in temporary employment occurred roughly a year before a drop in overall employment, said the Journal. Economists believe that businesses usually cut temporary workers first before dismissing full-time employees.