(Bloomberg) — In a jobs report that showed US firms still bullish on hiring, one sign of caution was the drop in temporary positions, often seen as an early-warning indicator that labor markets are cooling off.
(Bloomberg) — In a jobs report that showed US firms still bullish on hiring, one sign of caution was the drop in temporary positions, often seen as an early-warning indicator that labor markets are cooling off.
Temp jobs in business services fell 35,000 jobs in December, a Labor Department report showed Friday. It was the biggest drop since early 2021, and extends a five-month decline that’s seen about 111,000 of those positions eliminated.
Overall job growth exceeded expectations last month, with nonfarm payrolls increasing by 223,000.
In another sign that firms are responding to cooling demand, the number of overtime hours worked in manufacturing business slumped to the lowest levels since the height of the pandemic in 2020.
“Temp help employment and working hours are typically leading indicators, whereas other labor market measures are lagging indicators,” said Julia Pollak, chief economist at jobs website ZipRecruiter.
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