Tulsa World (12/31/13) Robert A. Funk
According to Robert Funk, chief executive officer of Express Employment Professionals, the unemployment rate at the end of 2014 will drop to between 6.7% and 7.2%. Labor force participation will remain mostly unchanged, between 62.6% and 63.5%.
The impact of the Affordable Care Act and other headwinds from the U.S. federal government will cause hiring uncertainty among businesses. Skilled workers will be hard to find, and the disability rate will continue to rise. Temporary workers could break the workforce penetration rate of 2.03% set in April 2000.