President George W. Bush signed into law a measure (S. 3406) that significantly amends the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The ADA Amendments Act is effective as of January 1, 2009.

Kforce Professional Staffing releases its 2009 Salary & Employment Guides for both Technology and Finance & Accounting, listing average salaries, job titles and descriptions for more than 40 major U.S. markets.

eGrabber provider of resume, data capture, and processing solutions, unveils the latest addition to its portfolio of Recruiting solutions LeadResearcher for PCRecruiter, which uses the power of the Internet to search and append missing data (email, phone, etc.) to contacts in PCRecruiter Rollup Lists.

Vault.com, Inc. releases the company's first digital-only book, the Vault Guide to Green Programs, which details how many prominent North American companies are incorporating environmental concerns into their business practices.

The Conference Board reports that in September, online advertised vacancies fell by a seasonally adjusted 216,000 to 4,418,000, with widespread losses across the regions and the States. The September losses continued a downward trend which started in May 2007, the effects of which can be seen in the unemployment and employment trends in the charts below.

In Depth
As the U.S. works toward stabilizing its financial markets after unprecedented events on Wall Street, the ripple effects of a cooler business climate in 2008 continue to infiltrate nationwide employment. Employers expect current hiring trends to hold steady through the end of the year, according to CareerBuilder.com and USA TODAY's "Q4 2008 Job Forecast."* The survey, conducted by Harris Interactive(R) between August 21 and September 9, 2008, included more than 3,000 hiring managers and HR professionals and over 6,100 workers in private sector companies nationwide.

"Employers are maintaining a conservative approach to recruitment as they maneuver through a weaker economy that has produced its share of casualties," said Matt Ferguson, CEO of CareerBuilder.com. "Certain sectors such as IT and Healthcare are still showing solid job growth while others struggle with reorganization, cost containment and other measures to stay afloat. Consistent with last quarter's findings, there is a slight decrease in the number of employers planning to add new workers in the next three months."

Emerging Trends for Workers
Of those workers who found a new job in 2008, 1-in-5 (21 %) reported their job search took them four months or longer.

1) Workers are taking on second jobs. Five percent of employers said their companies have required employees to take an unpaid leave of absence in the past 6 months as a cost-saving measure. In the wake of rising prices around energy, food, and healthcare, nearly one-in-ten workers (9%) have taken on a second job in 2008 to help make ends meet. Twenty-four percent are considering it.

2) Workers are postponing active job search. As workers await an upswing in economic performance and job creation, they are proceeding with caution. While the majority of workers said they would be open to a new job opportunity if they came across the right one, they are not actively pursuing a change in employment. Thirty-eight percent expect they will likely stay at their current jobs for at least 1 year, while 41% plan to stay with their present employers until retirement. This could pose additional challenges for the 34% of employers, who reported they are having a hard time finding qualified candidates, especially in highly-skilled areas.

3) Workers are taking measures to improve prospects down the line. To make themselves more marketable inside and outside of their companies, 26% of workers plan to go back to school to obtain a degree, certification, or other training. Of those who plan to go back to school, 32% want to pursue a bachelor's degree, while 10% are going back for their MBA and 12% are going back for a master's degree in another field.

Hiring in Q3 2008
Twenty-five percent of employers said they increased their number of full-time, permanent employees in the third quarter. Fifty-nine percent reported no change, while 14% reported a reduction in headcount and 1% was undecided. When asked if hours had changed, on average, for hourly workers in Q3 year-over-year, 68% reported no change in the number of hours offered. Twelve percent said hours had increased, while 16% said hours were cut and 4% were unsure.

Hiring in Q4 2008
Going forward, 23% of employers plan to add full-time, permanent employees in the next 3 months, a slight decline from the previous quarter. Ten percent plan to decrease headcount, while 63% anticipate no change and 4% are undecided.

Hiring By Region
Regional comparisons in hiring have remained consistent with previous quarters in 2008. Twenty-five percent of employers in the South plan to recruit full-time, permanent staff in the fourth quarter, the highest percentage of all regions, followed closely by the West at 24%. Twenty-two percent of hiring managers in both the Northeast and Midwest also expect to add headcount. In terms of staff reductions, the Northeast ranked highest with 11% of employers planning to shed jobs followed by 10% in the Midwest and South and 9% in the West.

Hiring By Company Size
Twenty-seven percent of employers with more than 250 employees plan to add full-time, permanent positions in the fourth quarter compared to 26% of those with 51 to 250 employees and 16% of those with 1 to 50 employees.

Layoffs
Fourteen percent of hiring managers reported there were layoffs at their locations in the third quarter. Eighty-four percent said layoffs did not occur, while 2% were unsure. Looking ahead, 10% anticipate there will be layoffs at their locations in the fourth quarter while 81% expect no change and 9% are unsure.

Compensation in 2008
As the end of the calendar year approaches and annual reviews begin, 65% of employers plan to provide an increase in salaries for full-time, permanent employees in the fourth quarter. Thirty-eight percent project the average raise will range between 1% and 3%, 24% expect an average raise of 4-10%, and 2% expect salaries to increase by 11% or more. Twenty-eight percent anticipate no change in compensation levels, while 3% are planning a decrease and 4% are undecided.

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