The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) released seasonally adjusted employment data on Friday that shows staffing firms added 25,600 new jobs from April to May, an increase of 1%. Compared to May 2012, temporary staffing employment for the month was higher by 7.5%.
Nonseasonally regulated BLS data, which approximates the actual number of jobs in the economy, showed the staffing industry added 70,500 new jobs from April to May this year, an increase of 2.7%. Compared to May last year, there were 6.5% more staffing workers this May.
“While there were some bright spots in the May BLS data, we are still not seeing the kind of widespread employment growth that we need to reduce the unemployment rate and put more Americans back to work,” said president and chief executive officer of the American Staffing Association Richard Wahlquist. “Staffing firms report increases in demand across a number of sectors while others remain relatively flat as businesses remain hesitant to add to their headcount.”
Professional and business serves added jobs to the economy that numbered around 57,000, the food services and drinking industries added 38,000 jobs, while retail trade added 28,000 and health care increased their jobs by 11,000. Employment in other major trades exhibited little or no change during May.
