The Decatur Daily
By Eric Fleischauer
Staff Writer
Decatur tops Manpower Inc. list
Decatur has the best economic outlook for the coming quarter in the state, according to a survey released Monday by Manpower Inc.
The survey of area employers found that 43 percent of Decatur employers intend to increase their work forces in April, May or June. None planned to decrease their work forces, and 57 percent expect no change.
“That is great news,” said Lynn Fowler, chairman of the Morgan County Economic Development Association. “It shows the quality and soundness of the companies we have here.”
Decatur’s 43 percent net total was the highest in the state, followed by Montgomery with 40 percent, Greenville with 37 percent, Florence with 33 percent and Birmingham with 30 percent.
Huntsville’s net total is 17 percent, followed by Mobile with 14 percent and the Wiregrass area with 13 percent.
Montgomery was the only Alabama city with a higher percentage of employers than Decatur indicating an intent to hire in the quarter, but because 7 percent of its employers said they intended to decrease the size of their work force, its net total was lower.
The best job prospects in Decatur in the coming quarter, according to the survey, will be in construction, durable and nondurable goods manufacturing, and wholesale/retail trade.
Statewide, 31 percent of employers said they planned to increase their work force, with 3 percent forecasting a decrease during the quarter.
Nationwide, 26 percent expect to increase work forces and 9 percent plan to reduce staffing levels.
The outlook for Decatur is down from the outlook headed into the first quarter of 2008, when 60 percent of employers said they intended to add employees.
“That we’re doing well does not surprise me,” said Fowler, “but I hadn’t expected us to do this well. Fantastic.”
Manpower has administered the Employment Outlook Survey for 45 years. It interviewed 14,000 U.S. employers to compile the results.
The most recent data on Morgan County’s unemployment, for January, showed an unemployment rate of 3.9 percent, up from 3.3 percent the month before. The Alabama Department of Industrial Relations compiled the unemployment data.
The statewide rate was 4 percent, and the national unemployment rate was 4.9 percent.