Workers in Manufacturing and Logistics Confident in Future of Employers

ATLANTA — The latest Randstad Manufacturing and Logistics Employee Confidence Index, which measures confidence among manufacturing and logistics workers, held steady in Q3, actually rising 0.3 points to 52.2. At the same time, more than half (53%) of manufacturing and logistics workers said they believe their current employer has a strong future, a six percent increase from last quarter.

The survey was conducted online by Harris Interactive among 167 manufacturing and logistics employees. Data was collected July 9-11, August 5-7 and September 9-11, 2013, and thus does not reflect the attitudes of employees during the government shutdown.

Given that the majority of respondents project bright futures for their employers, it is not surprising that the number of respondents who said they would actively look for a new job in the next twelve months dropped 14 percentage points from the second quarter (44% to 30%).

“Manufacturing and logistics companies have an active and fluctuant business workload as we head into the fourth quarter. As a result, they're turning more and more toward staffing firms to fill the talent gap and meet the quality and quantity of people they need to be productive,” said Phyllis Finley, Executive Vice President at Randstad US. “Overall growth projections for this vital segment of the nation's economy is reflected in the Institute for Supply Management's Purchasing Managers Index, which reached 56.4 percent in October, a 0.2 percentage point increase from September's reading of 56.2.

“As we look towards the fourth quarter and 2014, some of the positions expected to drive the most growth are maintenance technicians, machine operators and warehouse supervisors,” Finley added. “We are also seeing more hiring managers becoming more particular when looking at requirements and minimum skill levels. Resumes that reflect a variety of experiences, such as machine operation along with computer skills, create greater interest with hiring managers.”

Q3 2013 Survey Highlights:

Fewer Manufacturing and Logistics Workers Believe the Economy is Improving

Twenty-six percent of manufacturing and logistics workers believe the economy is getting stronger, showing a slight decrease from the previous quarter's 29 percent.

Percentage of Workers Likely to Job Search in Third Quarter Falls

Three-in-10 (30%) of manufacturing and logistics workers say they are likely to look for a new job in the next 12 months, falling 14 percentage points from the previous quarter.

Job Outlook Among Workers Less Bright

The percentage of workers who believe more jobs are available fell seven percentage points, decreasing from 28 percent to 21 percent in the third quarter.

Job Confidence Among Workers Holds Steady

The percentage of workers who are confident in their ability to find employment in Q3 held steady, showing no change from 44 percent in the second quarter.

Optimism in Future of Employers Improves

The percentage of workers who are confident in the future of their employers rose to 53 percent, marking a six percentage point increase from the previous quarter's readings.

This survey was conducted online within the United States by Harris Interactive on behalf of Randstad from July 9-11, August 5-7 and September 9-11, 2013 among 3,163 adults 18 and older, of which 167 are employed in manufacturing and logistics. This online survey is not based on a probability sample and therefore no estimate of theoretical sampling error can be calculated. For complete survey methodology, including weighting variables, please contact lesly.cardec@randstadusa.com.