Press Room

FT. LAUDERDALE, Fla., August 3, 2005 – Despite recent mixed economic data, many accounting and finance professionals in the United States report confidence in their personal situation and in the economy, according to a recent survey by Spherion Corporation (NYSE:SFN). The quarterly Spherion^® Accounting and Finance Employment Report, conducted by Harris Interactive^®, finds that 43 percent of U.S. adult accounting and finance workers believe the economy is getting stronger, compared to only 24 percent of U.S. workers overall.

In addition, many accounting and finance workers report confidence in job availability and in their ease of securing employment. Twenty-nine percent of adult workers in the accounting and finance profession believe more jobs are available, compared to 20 percent of adult workers in the U.S. in general. In addition, 68 percent of accounting and finance workers are confident in their ability to find a new job, versus 58 percent of U.S. workers as a whole.

“As companies continue to dedicate thousands of man hours and millions of dollars to meet compliance initiatives mandated by the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, the result is an incremental need for accounting and finance positions,” said Eric Archer, president of Spherion Professional Services. “At the same time, the accounting and finance professions have not escaped the effects of the impending labor shortage, making it difficult for companies to find quality talent to fill those positions. These trends are no doubt influencing the high percentage of accounting and finance workers who are confident in both their ability to find a new job and positive perception of the strength of the economy. In their world, things are looking up, way up.”

Results from the Spherion Accounting and Finance Employment Report:

Job Security Index Shows Four-fifths of Accounting and Finance Workers Secure in Their Job

• 79 percent of adult accounting and finance workers feel it is unlikely that their jobs will be eliminated in the next 12 months, compared to 77 percent of U.S. adult workers overall.

Job Transition Index Reports One-third of Workers in Accounting and Finance Likely to Job Search

• 34 percent of adult workers in accounting and finance said they are likely to look for a new job in the next 12 months, versus 39 percent of U.S. adult workers.

Forty-three Percent of Accounting and Finance Workers Believe the Economy is Strengthening

• 43 percent of adults working in accounting and finance positions believe that the economy is getting stronger, compared to 24 percent of U.S. adult workers.

Nearly Three in 10 Accounting and Finance Workers Believe More Jobs Are Available

• 29 percent of adult accounting and finance workers believe that more jobs are available, versus 20 percent of U.S. adult workers overall.

Three-fourths of Accounting and Finance Workers Are Confident in the Future of Their Employer

• 75 percent of adult workers in accounting and finance positions feel confident in the future of their employer, compared to 62 percent of the overall U.S. adult workforce.

More Than Two-thirds of Accounting and Finance Workers Feel Confident in Ability to Find Job

• 68 percent of accounting and finance workers are confident in their own ability to find a new job, while 58 percent of adult U.S. workers overall are confident.

About the Spherion Employment Report
As part of the Spherion^® Emerging Workforce^® series of employment surveys, the quarterly Spherion Accounting & Finance Employment Report provides a snapshot of the latest workforce trends among accounting and finance professionals across the country. Two 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; and the Spherion Job Transition Index, which captures how likely respondents are to look for a new job in the next 12 months. The survey also measures respondents’ confidence in the strength of the economy, availability of jobs, the future financial health of their employers and their ability to find a new job.

Methodology
The Accounting and Finance Employment Report is based on data from the Harris Interactive QuickQuery^SM online omnibus conducted monthly by Harris Interactive^® on behalf of Spherion Corporation. A U.S. sample of 2,789 employed adults, aged 18 years and older, was interviewed in a series of two polls conducted between May 9-11 and May 16-18, 2005 (for April 2005 n=2,643). Figures for age, sex, race/ethnicity, income, education and region were weighted where necessary to bring them into line with their actual proportions in the population. Propensity score weighting adjusted for respondents’ propensity to be online. Though this online sample is not a probability sample, in theory, with probability samples of this size, Harris Interactive estimates with 95 percent certainty that the results for the overall sample have a sampling error of plus or minus 2 percentage points. Sampling error for the results of employed adults who work in accounting or finance positions (n=110) is plus or minus 10 percentage points. 

About Spherion
Spherion Corporation is a leader in the staffing industry in North America, providing value-added staffing, recruiting and workforce solutions. Spherion has helped companies improve their bottom line by efficiently planning, acquiring and optimizing talent since 1946. To learn more, visit www.spherion.com.

About Harris Interactive^®
Harris Interactive Inc. ( www.harrisinteractive.com), the 15th largest market research firm in the world, is a Rochester, NY-based global research company that blends premier strategic consulting with innovative and efficient methods of investigation, analysis and application. Known for The Harris Poll® and for pioneering Internet-based research methods, Harris Interactive conducts proprietary and public research to help its clients achieve clear, material and enduring results.

Harris Interactive combines its intellectual capital, databases and technology to advance market leadership through its U.S. offices and wholly owned subsidiaries, HI Europe in London (www.hieurope.com), Novatris in Paris (www.novatris.com), and through an independent global network of affiliate market research companies. EOE M/F/D/V.

To become a member of the Harris Poll Online^SM and be invited to participate in future online surveys, please visit www.harrispollonline.com.