Survey: Most employers expect to add staff in 2015

ACCORDING TO THE Employers Association of the NorthEast, 57 percent of employers plan to add staff in 2015.
ACCORDING TO THE Employers Association of the NorthEast, 57 percent of employers plan to add staff in 2015.

LINCOLN – Most employers plan to add staff and invest in training programs this year, according to a recently released 2015 National Business Trends Survey by the Employer Associations of America.
Regional data was released this week by the Employers Association of the NorthEast, whose members are from Rhode Island, Massachusetts and Connecticut.
The survey covers trends in staff, hiring, job creation and pay.

“Employers are keenly aware of short- and long-term competition and talent challenges looming ahead,” Meredith Wise, chairwoman of the board of the national Employer Associations of America and president of the Employers Association of the NorthEast, said in a statement.

“The survey allows executives to make data-driven decisions and provides detailed information on how other executives plan to approach their business in 2015. Here in the Northeast, the results reflect a tempered but cautious optimism of the region,” Wise said.

The regional data showed that 53 percent of executives believe the 2015 economy will be at least the same as the 2014 economy, and that 41 percent believe it will be better.

- Advertisement -

Other findings include:

  • 57 percent of executives in the Northeast plan to add staff in 2015; that number is slightly less than in 2014, which showed 59 percent planned to add staff, but more than the national rate of 52 percent for 2015.)
  • 81 percent of executives plan to award wage increases, which is comparable to 78 percent of survey respondents nationally who indicated they would be awarding raises.
  • 58 percent said they will provide additional training, an increase from the 56 percent figure in last year’s survey and identical to the 58 percent nationally.

“Investment in both pay and training is a reflection of the need to retain key talent as regional respondents noted skilled labor shortage as the greatest ‘serious’ challenge both short-term (over the next year) and long-term (over the next five years) for their businesses,” information from the association stated.

A total of 1,417 companies in all 50 states were surveyed in October and November 2014, representing companies of all sizes, according to the association. Fifty-three percent of those that responded have up to 99 employees, followed by 27 percent with 100 to 249 employees, 12 percent with 250 to 499 employees, 4 percent with 500 to 999 employees and 4 percent with more than 1,000 workers.

No posts to display