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News: ASA Surveys

  • ASA Employment & Sales Survey

    Staffing Employment Surges in 2021

    Competition for Qualified Talent Heats Up The staffing industry continued recovering from the 2020 pandemic recession in 2021, as U.S. staffing companies employed an average of 2.7 million temporary and contract workers per week. While still below the 3.1 million average weekly workers before the pandemic in 2019, it represents a marked improvement over the… More ›

  • ASA Employment & Sales Survey

    Staffing Employment Rebounds in Third Quarter

    4Q 2021 Revenue Expected to Grow 13% “U.S. businesses are turning to the staffing industry for help in filling millions of current job openings,” said Richard Wahlquist, ASA president and chief executive officer. “The staffing industry is playing an increasingly important role in today’s labor market by providing talent sourcing expertise and workforce flexibility to… More ›

  • ASA Employment & Sales Survey

    Staffing Employment Edges Down in Second Quarter

    Strays From Seasonal Growth Trend The gap between quarter-to-quarter sales growth and a contraction in staffing employment is more than six percentage points—significantly higher than the average of two percentage points since ASA began tracking quarterly metrics in 1992. Notable differences between changes in staffing sales and employment typically occur during times of economic uncertainty…. More ›

  • 2Q 2021 Revenue Expected to Rise 20% Staffing jobs declined 3.7% in the first quarter of 2021 from the same period in 2020, while temporary and contract staffing sales increased 5.2% year-to-year—totaling $33.8 billion in the first quarter of 2021. “Staffing firms are currently on the front lines helping America address a new crisis—millions of… More ›

  • The industry began to rebound, with average weekly staffing employment increasing from 2.1 million in the second quarter to 2.3 million in the third quarter (+14.4%); climbing further to 2.8 million in the fourth quarter (+18.8%). Temporary and contract staffing sales followed similar patterns. Throughout 2020, U.S. staffing companies employed an average of 2.5 million… More ›

  • 4Q20 Revenue Expected to Decline 7% Staffing employment decreased 33.6% in the second quarter of 2020 compared with the same period in 2019—a historic year-to-year decline. Staffing employment decreased 23.5% in the third quarter of 2020 from the same period in 2019. Although a historic year-to-year decline for the third quarter, the gap narrowed as… More ›

  • 3Q20 Revenue Expectations Improve Staffing employment decreased 33.6% in the second quarter of 2020 compared with the same period in 2019—a historic year-to-year decline. “Amid government mandated business shutdowns, the staffing industry has played a critically important role in supplying essential workers whenever and wherever needed since the first days of the Covid-19 crisis,” said… More ›

  • 2Q20 Revenue Expected to Drop 20% “While the decrease in staffing employment has been significant during the pandemic, staffing agencies continue to provide personnel across all essential occupations necessary to ensuring continuity of functions critical to public health, safety, and well-being,” said Richard Wahlquist, ASA president and chief executive officer. “As businesses begin to reopen,… More ›

  • ASA Employment & Sales Survey

    Staffing Employment Eased in 2019

    New Data From Quarterly ASA Staffing Employment and Sales Survey ASA data show average weekly staffing employment increased 1.4% in 2018 before easing 4.1% in 2019. Annual temporary and contract staffing sales in 2019 totaled $136.7 billion, 1.3% less than the record high of $138.4 billion in 2018. During all of 2019, staffing companies hired… More ›

  • New Data From Quarterly ASA Staffing Employment and Sales Survey On a quarter-to-quarter basis, staffing employment eased 0.7% from the second quarter to the third quarter, while temporary and contract staffing sales were up slightly (+0.6%). “In a growing economy and ever-tightening labor market, businesses are placing an even greater premium on staffing companies’ ability… More ›

Experts in the staffing and recruiting industry, as well as professionals in other disciplines pertinent to staffing, are encouraged to submit their ideas to present at ASA events, in webinars, and for publication in articles.


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