MEDIA RELEASE
PR34938
The New Zealand Manpower Employment Outlook Survey Indicates a Moderately Improved
Labour Market in the Third Quarter of 2009.
SYDNEY, June 9/Medianet International-AsiaNet/ --
Manpower Employment Outlook Survey
Under embargo until 00:01, (GMT), 9 June 2009
The Manpower Employment Outlook Survey released today reveals the pace of hiring is set to
increase slightly into the third quarter of 2009.
The Manpower survey of 868 employers throughout New Zealand, indicates hiring intentions for
the next three months have improved slightly quarter-over-quarter, with a three percentage point
increase in the Outlook. However, the year-over-year comparison indicates that employer hiring
plans are considerably weaker: the Outlook has declined by 18 percentage points.
“Hiring intentions in New Zealand continues to be sluggish and all three regions have continued
to fall in the last three months; however, there is some good news with the majority of employers
– 69 percent – indicating they will make no reductions to their current headcount,” said Lincoln
Crawley, Managing Director, Manpower Australia and New Zealand.
Employers in each of the three regions forecast a struggling labour market for the upcoming
quarter. The weakest Net Employment Outlook of -9% is reported by Wellington employers, but
employer sentiment is similarly weak in Christchurch, where the Outlook is -8%. In Auckland, too,
the Outlook is a disappointing -6%.
From an industry perspective, employers in the Transportation & Utilities (+4%) industry sector
report the most optimistic hiring expectations. The Outlook is relatively stable quarter-over-quarter
and year-over-year. Conversely, job seekers can expect the least optimistic hiring activity in the
Manufacturing (-10%) industry sector. However, although the forecast is a considerable 24
percentage points weaker year-over-year, sector employers are considerably more optimistic
than in the second quarter and report a quarter-over-quarter improvement of 10 percentage
points.
“There is a marginal improvement in the Net Employment Outlook as we head into the third
quarter of 2009 with the Transportation & Utilities industry as the stand-out with the most positive
hiring activity. These results seem to be indicative of a stabilising labour market as employers
continue to be surgical in their approach to hiring and retaining key staff members to prepare for
the upswing in the economy,” Crawley said.
-End-
For further information or to arrange an interview:
Vern Narayan,
Marketing Manager,
Manpower Australia & New Zealand
Phone – +61 2 9263 8570, Mobile – +61 427 254 416,
E:vnarayan@manpower.com.au
Download the New Zealand Manpower Employment Outlook Survey at
Manpower Fact Sheet
The next Manpower Employment Outlook Survey will be released on the 8th of September
2009 to report hiring expectations for the fourth quarter of 2009. The Manpower Employment
Outlook Survey is available free of charge to the public through their local Manpower
representative in participating countries. You can download a copy of the Australian report in full,
Note to Editors
Commentary is based on seasonally adjusted data where available. Full survey results for each
of the 34 countries and territories included in this quarter’s survey, plus regional and global
addition, all tables and graphs from the full report are available to be downloaded for use in
About the Survey
The Manpower Employment Outlook Survey is conducted quarterly to measure employers’
intentions to increase or decrease the number of employees in their workforce during the next
quarter. It is the most extensive forward-looking survey of its kind, unparalleled in its size, scope,
longevity and area of focus. The Survey has been running for more than 45 years and is one of
the most trusted surveys of employment activity in the world. The Manpower Employment
Outlook Survey is based on interviews with over 70,000 public and private employers worldwide
and is considered a highly respected economic indicator.
The Manpower Employment Outlook Survey is currently available for 34 countries and
territories: Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Czech
Republic, France, Germany, Greece, Guatemala, Hong Kong, Hungary, India, Ireland, Italy,
Japan, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Peru, Poland, Romania, Singapore, Spain,
South Africa, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, the United Kingdom and the United States. The
program began in the United States and Canada in 1962, and the United Kingdom was added in
1966. Mexico and Ireland launched the survey in 2002, and 13 additional countries were added
to the program in 2003. New Zealand joined the program in 2004, China, India, Switzerland and
Taiwan were added in 2005, and Argentina, Peru, Costa Rica and South Africa joined in 2006.
Colombia, the Czech Republic, Greece, Guatemala, Poland and Romania joined in 2008, and
Hungary joined the survey in 2009. For more information, visit the Manpower Inc. Web site at
www.manpower.com and enter the Research Center, or contact Bruce Bock, Sr. Global
Communications Manager at bruce.bock@manpower.com
About Manpower Inc.
Manpower Inc. (NYSE: MAN) is a world leader in the employment services industry; creating
and delivering services that enable its clients to win in the changing world of work. Celebrating its
60th anniversary in 2008, the $22 billion company offers employers a range of services for the
entire employment and business cycle including permanent, temporary and contract recruitment;
employee assessment and selection; training; outplacement; outsourcing and consulting.
Manpower's worldwide network of 4,200 offices in 82 countries and territories enables the
company to meet the needs of its 400,000 clients per year, including small and medium size
enterprises in all industry sectors, as well as the world's largest multinational corporations. The
focus of Manpower's work is on raising productivity through improved quality, efficiency and cost-
reduction across their total workforce, enabling clients to concentrate on their core business
activities. Manpower Inc. operates under five brands: Manpower, Manpower Professional, Elan,
Jefferson Wells and Right Management. More information on Manpower Inc. is available at
SOURCE: Manpower Services (NZ) Pty Ltd.
NEWS 
