MassLive.com (08/12/12) Jim Kinney

Springfield, MA-based United Personnel says Massachusetts’ new law requiring temporary staffing firms to formally disclose more information to employees imposes a burden that will likely mean the company will have to hire someone to help manage the paperwork involved. “I think the intent of the law—to protect temporary employees—is admirable,” says United Personnel president Patricia Canavan. “I’m probably going to hire someone to help me manage this.”

Edward Lenz, senior vice president for legal and public affairs at the American Staffing Association, says the law is geared toward companies that pick up workers at a designated point and transport them to a work site. That’s not what most temporary staffing firms do, he says.

The association lobbied on behalf of ASA members in Massachusetts, and he says the law on the books now is much more fair to staffing firms. However, “we still think it is not necessary. There are existing laws on the books and enforcement should have been stepped up.”

Wichita Falls Times Record News (Texas) (08/12/12)

Wichita Falls, TX-based MyStaf has purchased Dividend Staffing Services. MyStaf owner Bert Huff says: “We’re obviously very excited about this opportunity. [Dividend owner Bill Palin] has been a leader and an innovator in the staffing industry for over 23 years, not just in the Wichita Falls market but also around the country. We look forward to working with him through this transition and building on the solid foundation he laid.” Dividend’s employees and clients will shift to MyStaf today.

Wall Street Journal (08/10/12) Kathleen Madigan

The outlook for the U.S. economy and labor markets is weaker this quarter than it was three months ago, according to a quarterly survey released on Aug. 10 by the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia. The regional bank’s Survey of Professional Forecasters expects real gross domestic product to grow at only a 1.6% annual rate this quarter and 2.2% in the fourth quarter, down from 2.5% and 2.6% forecast three months ago. The 48 forecasters surveyed also trimmed their view for the first and second quarters of 2013, with growth of 1.8% and 2.3%, compared with earlier projections of 2.6% and 2.7%.

Lower economic activity forecasts are leading to reduced expectations for job growth. The forecasters now see payroll gains averaging 125,000 per month this quarter and 135,300 in the fourth quarter. That hiring pace is down sharply from the gains of 170,000 and 172,600 expected in the second-quarter survey.