Index Up 3.3% from July, And Up 5.5% Compared to Same Week in 2025
ASA Staffing Index Monthly Report, August 2026
The ASA Staffing Index four-week moving average increased from the previous week to a rounded value of 92. Temporary and contract staffing employment for the four weeks ending Aug. 16 was 4.4% higher than during the same period in 2025. Compared with the July monthly report, staffing employment grew by 3.3%.
Staffing employment ticked down during the week of Aug. 10–16, with the ASA Staffing Index slightly declining by 0.1% to hold at a rounded value of 93. Staffing jobs were 5.5% higher compared with the same period last year, up from 5.2% recorded the previous week. New starts, however, increased during the 33rd week of the year, up 5.0% from the prior week. Nearly half of all staffing companies (49%) reported gains in new assignments week to week, above the average of 41% so far in 2026.
“Temporary and contract staffing employment continues to grow even as employers face an uncertain labor market,” said Noah Yosif, chief economist at ASA. “While the year-to-year difference in the ASA Staffing Index narrowed over the month of July, growth rebounded in August. Temporary employment continues to benefit from a cautious hiring environment driven by demand for flexible labor commitments.”
This week will be used in the August monthly employment situation report scheduled to be issued by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics on Sept. 4.
The ASA Staffing Index is reported nine days after each workweek, making it a near real-time measure of staffing employment trends. ASA Staffing Starts are the number of temporary and contract employees placed in new assignments during the reporting week. ASA research shows that staffing employment has historically been a coincident economic indicator.
For more information, visit americanstaffing.net/index.
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About the American Staffing Association (ASA)
The American Staffing Association is the voice of the U.S. staffing, recruiting, and workforce solutions industry. ASA advances the interests of the industry across all sectors through advocacy, research, education, and the promotion of high standards of legal, ethical, and professional practices. For more information about ASA, visit americanstaffing.net.