A recent survey by the National Association of Colleges and Employers puts the spotlight on employers' hiring plans for the next year. NACE surveyed employers who had provided projections in August 2008. Compared with their earlier projections, employers expect to decrease hiring levels by 1.6%. In comparison to their actual hires from the Class of 2008, respondents expect to hire about 1.3% more graduates from the Class of 2009.
NACE's executive director says that hiring plans are essentially flat, and that many employers are looking to cut back. In August about one-third of employers said they would trim their college hiring, but in the latest poll 52% said they were planning do so.
Manufacturing hiring expectations remained flat, while construction firms plan to decrease their college hiring by 19.6%, and the trade sector plans to decrease by 7.4%.
The director says that many of this year's graduates will find fewer openings available to them and may have to consider different types of opportunities, industries and organizations than planned.
What does this mean for distributors? If you are in a position to hire, now may be a great time to snatch up some talented graduates. It may also be a good time to work with groups to educate future graduates on opportunities in the industry, such as the Industrial Careers Pathway, a collaborative project between several distribution associations.
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