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Layoffs rise, hiring declines for third month in a row

In September, job growth will fall behind the rate from a year ago in the manufacturing and service sectors, and payroll cuts are also rising for the month, according to the Society for Human Resource Management's (SHRM) Leading Indicators of National Employment (LINE) survey for September 2011.

The manufacturing hiring index will drop in September on a year-over-year basis by a net of 9.6 points (a net of 28.4 percent of companies will hire in September, compared with a net of 38.0 percent that added jobs a year ago). Service-sector hiring will decrease in September by a net of 15.3 points (a net of 22.1 percent will add jobs, compared with a net of 37.4 percent that added jobs a year ago).

The LINE results for September 2011 reflect what may be a setback for the labor market’s recovery, and they are in accord with recent federal data. Nonfarm payrolls grew by just 117,000 jobs in July, according to the BLS, not nearly enough to make a dent in unemployment. LINE’s September report also reveals a rise in layoffs—15.8 percent of manufacturers plan to cut jobs, up from 14.6 percent a year ago, and 9.9 percent of service sector companies plan to eliminate jobs, up from 7.8 percent in September 2010.

The full report, which also includes data for recruiting difficulty, new-hire compensation, and vacancies, can be found here.