American Staffing Association (11/07/14) Cynthia Poole

Staffing firms created 15,100 new jobs in October, up 0.5% from September and 8.8% from October 2013, according to seasonally adjusted data released today by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Year-to-year growth is nearing the 9% rate recorded at the beginning of this year—averaging 8.7% over the past 12 months.

Nonseasonally adjusted BLS data, which estimate the actual number of jobs in the economy, indicated that temporary help employment increased 1.6% from September and 8.3% from the same month last year.

“Although the pace of labor market recovery has been slow and uneven in the five years and four months since the end of the Great Recession, the story is that companies are now consistently adding jobs across most sectors,” said Richard Wahlquist, president and chief executive officer of the American Staffing Association. “Staffing firms report they expect to see continued hiring of temporary and contract employees, as well as permanent placements in the year ahead.”