CareerBuilder.com, the nation's largest online job site with more than 20 million unique visitors and over 1 million jobs, released the results of its survey tracking projected hiring and job search activities for the second quarter. The survey was conducted from February 21 to March 6, 2006 of more than 2,500 workers, including 1,000-plus hiring managers primarily operating in services industries.

HIRING HIGHLIGHTS

"Job gains have been broad-based across most major job sectors," said Matt Ferguson, CEO of CareerBuilder.com. "Following a pattern of durable job growth, hiring managers are confident that the second quarter will bring new employment opportunities.

Expansion, product launches and more competitive sales and customer service initiatives are fueling demand for new employees over the next three months. Thirty-one percent of hiring managers expect to increase their staffs in the second quarter while 12 percent plan to decrease them."

Amount of Workers Being Hired

Fourteen percent of hiring managers anticipate adding more than 50 employees in the second quarter. Sixteen percent of hiring managers plan to recruit 11 to 50 employees while 42 percent expect to recruit 10 or less. One-third of hiring managers plan to do the majority of their hiring for the year in the second quarter.

Hiring Cycle

One-third of hiring managers report difficulty in finding candidates who meet their job requirements, up from 25 percent in the first quarter. One-in-four hiring managers report it takes them more than two months to fill open positions and nearly half say it takes them one month or more.

Most Popular Positions for Recruitment

The leading areas for job requisitions in the upcoming quarter include healthcare, sales, information technology, retail and accounting/finance. Demand for professional and technical workers will be strong with one-third of hiring managers targeting this job level. In addition, one-in-ten hiring managers expect to recruit managers, directors and senior executives while nearly one-in-five will add administrative and clerical staff.

Regional Hiring

The Midwest and South are leading the regions in recruitment plans for the second quarter. Thirty-four percent of hiring managers in the Midwest expect to increase staff levels, while 11 percent plan to decrease them. Thirty-three percent of hiring managers in the South expect to increase staff levels, while 9 percent plan to decrease them.

The Northeast continues to trail behind the other regions with 29 percent of hiring managers planning to increase headcount and 15 percent planning to downsize staffs. The West saw a dip from the previous quarter with 30 percent of hiring managers expecting to recruit new employees and 13 percent planning staff cuts.

JOB CHANGES AND SATISFACTION HIGHLIGHTS

One-in-five workers report dissatisfaction with their current positions and one-in-ten plan to change jobs in the next three months.

Job Changes by Region

The West continues to lead the regions in plans to change jobs. Thirteen percent of workers in the West are planning to leave their current positions within the next three months, compared to 11 percent in the South and Midwest and 9 percent in the Northeast.

Job Changes by Select Industries and Job Functions

Hospitality workers report the highest incidence of plans to change jobs in the second quarter with 16 percent expecting to leave their current positions. Following closely behind are retail workers at 14 percent, IT workers at 13 percent, and both sales and accounting/finance workers at 12 percent. Once again, healthcare and government workers are the least likely to leave their jobs with 10 percent of healthcare workers and 7 percent of government workers planning exit strategies from their employers.

Survey Methodology

The new CareerBuilder.com survey, "Q2 2006 Job Forecast," was conducted from February 21 to March 6, 2006. Methodology used to collect survey responses totaling more than 2,500 workers for this study involved selecting a random sample of comScore Networks panel members. These Web Panel members were approached via an e-mail invitation, which asked them to participate in a short online survey. The results of this survey are statistically accurate to within +/- 1.96 percentage points (19 times out of 20). Note: the sample of 2,500+ included over 1,000 hiring managers. The results for the hiring managers alone are accurate within +/- 3.09 percentage points (19 times out of 20).

About CareerBuilder.com

CareerBuilder.com is the nation's largest online job site with more than 20 million unique visitors and over 1 million jobs. Owned by Gannett Co., Inc. , Tribune Company , and Knight Ridder, Inc. , the company offers a vast online and print network to help job seekers connect with employers. CareerBuilder.com powers the career centers for more than 800 partners that reach national, local, industry and niche audiences. These include more than 170 newspapers and leading portals such as America Online and MSN. The nation's top employers take advantage of CareerBuilder.com's easy job postings, 15 million-plus resumes, Diversity Channel and more. Millions of job seekers visit the site every month to search for opportunities by industry, location, company and job type, sign up for automatic email job alerts, and get advice on job hunting and career management. For more information about CareerBuilder.com products and services, visit http://www.careerbuilder.com/ .

  Media Contact:
  Jennifer Sullivan
  (773) 527-1164
  Jennifer.Sullivan@careerbuilder.com

SOURCE: CareerBuilder.com