CHICAGO – February 19, 2014 – Is the recession really behind us? For many U.S. companies, the answer is no.

Fifty-eight percent of employers said that when it comes to their business, it feels like the recession is not over. Among small businesses with 50 or fewer employees, the number of employers who share this sentiment is 66 percent.

The national survey was conducted online by Harris Poll on behalf of CareerBuilder from November 6 to December 2, 2013, and included a representative sample of 2,201 hiring managers and human resource professionals across industries and company sizes.

Stagnant or declining sales and human capital issues are among the concerns employers voiced in the study. Sixty-two percent reported that sales did not increase at their companies in the last half of 2013. While the outlook for 2014 is improving, more than half (56 percent) of employers don’t expect a rise in sales in the first half of the year.

“Many companies are still struggling to regain footing that was lost during the recession,” said Rosemary Haefner, Vice President of Human Resources at CareerBuilder. “Only 28 percent of employers reported that their business has returned to normal or is better than it was before 2007. Retention and productivity issues are top of mind as companies deal with constricting budgets, reorgs and long vacancies, and look to engage with current and potential employees in a more meaningful way.”

More than half of employers say they currently have positions for which they can’t find qualified candidates. In addition to recruiting high-skill applicants, some of the top staffing challenges companies say they are facing in 2014 include:

· Retaining top talent – 32 percent

· Lifting employee morale – 31 percent

· Providing competitive compensation – 27 percent

· Worker burnout – 26 percent

· Maintaining productivity levels – 25 percent

· Managing organizational changes – 20 percent

· Employee engagement – 17 percent

· Providing upward mobility – 17 percent

· Providing enough training opportunities to employees – 15 percent

· Cutting down on cost-per-hire – 12 percent

· Lack of succession planning – 11 percent

· Limited recruitment budget – 11 percent

· Adapting to new ways to source/recruit candidates – 8 percent

Survey Methodology

This survey was conducted online within the U.S. by Harris Poll on behalf of CareerBuilder among 2,201 hiring managers and human resource professionals (employed full-time, not self-employed, non-government) between November 6 and December 2, 2013 (percentages for some questions are based on a subset, based on their responses to certain questions). With a pure probability sample of 2,201, one could say with a 95 percent probability that the overall results have a sampling error of +/- 2.09 percentage points. Sampling error for data from sub-samples is higher and varies.

About CareerBuilder®

CareerBuilder is the global leader in human capital solutions, helping companies target and attract great talent. Its online career site, CareerBuilder.com®, is the largest in the United States with more than 24 million unique visitors and 1 million jobs. CareerBuilder works with the world’s top employers, providing everything from labor market intelligence to talent management software and other recruitment solutions. Owned by Gannett Co., Inc. (NYSE:GCI), Tribune Company and The McClatchy Company (NYSE:MNI), CareerBuilder and its subsidiaries operate in the United States, Europe, South America, Canada and Asia. For more information, visit www.careerbuilder.com

Media Contact

Jennifer Grasz

773-527-1164

jennifer.grasz@careerbuilder.com

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CareerBuilder Media Contact
For all media inquiries and interview requests, contact:

Jennifer Grasz
(P) 773-527-1164
(E) jennifer.grasz@careerbuilder.com