Randstad: Employee Confidence on the Upswing after Government Shutdown

 The confidence of American employees in the workplace has rebounded after its decline following the government shut down, reports the Randstad Employee Index. The Index, which measures employees’ outlook on jobs, the economy, and career prospects, jumped three percentage points in November to reach 54.5 percent. Confidence also rose in the economy and the job market.

“The government shutdown had a minimal impact on the job market,” said Jim Link, Chief HR Officer, Randstad North America. “Despite the recent macroeconomic events, we remain encouraged by high levels of worker confidence when it comes to their outlook on the strength of the economy and availability of jobs.”

Link added, “More encouraging is the better than expected surge in retail sales posted in October. Economists are predicting retail hiring to potentially surpass last year’s figures—which would be a nice boost in the road to economic recovery.”

In addition to the over-the-month gains in employee confidence, macro confidence rose substantially over October, rising from 34.8 percent to 41.2 percent in November. Personal confidence fell slightly from 68.3 percent to 67.8 percent. The security index also fell between October and November, falling from 71 percent to 69 percent.