Press Room

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla., August 15, 2008 – The Florida Employee Confidence Index decreased 6.6 points to 39.9 in July, declining for the first time in two months and reaching a new low, according to the latest Spherion^® Employment Report. The monthly survey of Florida workers, conducted by Harris Interactive^® on behalf of Spherion Corporation, reflects workers’ increased pessimism in the economy, job market and their personal employment situation. Despite these concerns, 31 percent report that they are likely to look for a new job in the next year, unchanged from June.

Results from the Florida Employment Report:

• Sixty-six percent of workers feel it is unlikely they will lose their job in the next 12 months, a decrease of 16 percentage points from June.
• More workers believe fewer jobs are available. Specifically, 76 percent in July versus 62 percent reported in June.
• Thirty-one percent of workers are likely to look for a new job in the next year, showing no change from the previous month. 

“What seemed like a positive trend in the Employee Confidence Index over the past two months appears to have taken a hit this month,” said Paula Franco, branch manager for Spherion Staffing Services in Florida. “Clearly there are lingering concerns over the economy and job market that have impacted workers’ overall confidence levels. Despite this new low in overall confidence, it’s important for employers to note that the workforce is keeping their eyes open for other opportunities. Those employers that are waiting for rosy economic headlines are already too late when it comes to finding top talent. With economists now projecting several more months of job loss ahead, employers will most likely remain cautious about hiring until they have an immediate need, and at that point, it might be too late.”

About the Spherion Employment Report

As part of the Spherion^® Emerging Workforce^® Series of employment surveys, the monthly Spherion Employment Report provides a snapshot of the latest workforce trends across the country and is issued in conjunction with state and national labor market releases. Three key indices are measured: the Spherion Job Security Index, which captures how likely respondents think it is that they will lose their job or that their job will be eliminated in the next 12 months; the Spherion Job Transition Index, which captures how likely respondents are to look for a new job in the next 12 months; and the Employee Confidence Index, which measures employees’ overall confidence in the economy, the future of their employer, the availability of jobs, and their ability to find other employment. The Employee Confidence Index is based on these four components, with a ‘score’ calculated for each by taking the difference of the percentage of positive responses and the percentage of negative responses. These four scores are then averaged to indicate an overall level of employee confidence scaled from 0 (no confidence) to 100 (complete confidence). A reading above 50 indicates a positive confidence level.

Methodology

The July 2008 Spherion^® Employment Report was conducted online within the United by Harris Interactive on behalf of Spherion Corporation between July 7 and 9 and July 15 and 17, 2008 among a U.S. sample of 3,161  employed adults, aged 18 years and older, of whom 170 are employed in Florida (for June 2008 n=148). Results were weighted as needed for age, sex, race/ethnicity, income, education and region. Propensity score weighting was also used to adjust for respondents’ propensity to be online.

All sample surveys and polls, whether or not they use probability sampling, are subject to multiple sources of error which are most often not possible to quantify or estimate, including sampling error, coverage error, error associated with nonresponse, error associated with question wording and response options, and post-survey weighting and adjustments. Therefore, Harris Interactive avoids the words “margin of error” as they are misleading. All that can be calculated are different possible sampling errors with different probabilities for pure, unweighted, random samples with 100% response rates. These are only theoretical because no published polls come close to this ideal.

Respondents for this survey were selected from among those who have agreed to participate in Harris Interactive surveys. The data have been weighted to reflect the composition of the U.S. adult population. Because the sample is based on those who agreed to be invited to participate in the Harris Interactive online research panel, no estimates of theoretical sampling error can be calculated.

About Spherion
Spherion Corporation (NYSE: SFN) is a leading recruiting and staffing company that provides integrated solutions to meet the evolving needs of companies and job candidates. As an industry pioneer for more than 60 years, Spherion has sourced, screened and placed millions of individuals in temporary, temp-to-hire and full-time jobs.

With approximately 700 locations in the United States and Canada, Spherion delivers innovative workforce solutions that improve business performance. Spherion provides its services to more than 8,000 customers, from Fortune 500 companies to a wide range of small and mid-size organizations. Employing more than 300,000 people annually through its network, Spherion is one of North America's largest employers. Spherion operates under the following brands: Spherion Staffing Services Group for administrative, clerical and light industrial workers; Technisource for technology professionals and solutions; The Mergis Group for accounting and finance and other professional positions; Todays Office Professionals for specialty administrative personnel; and Spherion Recruitment Process Outsourcing. To learn more, visit www.spherion.com.  

About Harris Interactive

Harris Interactive is a global leader in custom market research. With a long and rich history in multimodal research, powered by our science and technology, we assist clients in achieving business results. Harris Interactive serves clients globally through our North American, European and Asian offices and a network of independent market research firms. For more information, please visit www.harrisinteractive.com.