jobs | nashvillepost.com

Everyone is pessimistic

The National Federation of Independent Business' small business optimism index showed only a slight — .7 point — uptick in August, reaching 88.8 percent. But the two measures that helped with the gain, expected retail sales and expected business conditions in six months, are still in "recession territory."

“Small business owners are expecting sub-par growth in the second half of 2010,” said Bill Dunkelberg, NFIB’s chief economist. “Consumers are pessimistic, business owners are pessimistic and Washington’s leadership has been unable to inspire any confidence in the future.”

On the employment front, companies reported average job losses 0.3 employees per firm and 13 percent plan to reduce their workforce in the next three months. Eight percent — down one point from July — said they plan to hire in that time frame. Click on the above link for a breakdown of responses on capital spending and outlook, sales and inventories, inflation, earnings and credit.

Sep 14, 2010 1:00 PM

Employers tap on hiring brakes again

The Conference Board's latest report on employment trends is up more than 9 percent from a year ago, but is also the first since March 2009 to have seven of its eight components heading south.

Sep 8, 2010 7:27 AM

Hope for grads

A survey by the National Association of Colleges and Employers says businesses plan to hire a lot more 2011 grads than they did 2010 seniors.

Sep 7, 2010 9:10 AM

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Our execs are way more upbeat than yours

The team at Robert Half International says business leaders in Tennessee are a good bit more optimistic than the national average. A net 23 percent of executives in Tennessee plan to hire during Q4 versus just 6 percent across the country.

Chad Leibundguth, regional vice president for RHI says, “This report indicates that Tennessee executives are more optimistic about their growth prospects for the fourth quarter than they have been in previous months. With a recent spike in temp-to-hire activity, we’re seeing that local employers are confident about their hiring plans, particularly in the fields of healthcare and financial services,” he said.

Here are the national numbers.

Sep 1, 2010 1:05 PM

Why Davidson's higher jobless rate may be a good sign

Yesterday's data set from the Tennessee Department of Labor & Workforce Development showed the Nashville area's unemployment rate dipping to 8.8 percent in July from 9.0 percent the month before. What caught most people's eye was the aberration in Davidson County, where the jobless number rose from June's 9.0 percent to 9.3 percent — a sharp departure from counties like Rutherford and Williamson, where rates fell 70 and 50 basis points, respectively. Where did that difference come from? Not job growth. State statisticians had almost all area counties — including Davidson — growing their employment base by a shade more than 0.5 percent. Where Davidson deviated in July was by growing its labor force by more than 2,600 people, or about 0.8 percent. The other 12 counties in our MSA saw their workforce shrink by almost 700 people. Which is why the rise in unemployment in this region's core county may not be cause for dismay. These days, a growing labor force primarily signals that people previously too discouraged to look for jobs are returning to the fray. Granted, it doesn't say much about the availability of jobs. But remember that a job hunter's sentiment is shaped in large part by what he sees close to home and hears from neighbors, family and friends about what's happening in the market. The people re-entering the workforce are seeing something others may not. There's also this to consider: Summer is prime moving season for families. A two-income household relocating for a Middle Tennessee job likely is doing so only for one position. The second parent will hit our labor market without a job but with plenty of motivation to start a career here. I'd bet that, if we could dig really deep into these numbers, we'd find that a good number of the people who helped bump up Davidson's unemployment rate last month fit that category.

Aug 27, 2010 12:34 PM

Project runway complete

After a year-long, $28.5 million reconstruction project, the Nashville International Airport will reopen runway 2L-20R the week of Aug. 30. The project generated about 300 jobs, according to the Metropolitan Nashville Airport Authority. The MNAA also provided these fun stats about the materials used in the reconstruction:

89,564 tons of asphalt
66,048 cubic yards of concrete
23,981 tons of stone
87,435 tons of recycled concrete
26,807 tons of recycled asphalt
9.26 miles of cable
2.96 miles of silt fence

For more, see our earlier story on the the improvements at Nashville International.

Aug 27, 2010 7:05 AM

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State jobless rate back into single digits

Tennessee's unemployment rate fell 20 basis points in July to 9.8 percent as the health care, support and clothing sectors grew by a combined 2,600 jobs.

Aug 20, 2010 7:26 AM

Sitel expanding Mississippi call center

Nashville-based business process outsourcing firm Sitel said it's hired 110 people at a Mississippi call center last month and has plans to add 300 more by the end of October.

“Sitel continues to set the standard for technical innovation and customer support excellence for call centers across the globe,” said Kendall Williams, site director of the company’s Starkville facility. “These newly-created positions will not only play a key role in deepening Sitel’s footprint and brand appeal across the industry, but also build on our 10 years of success in being a vital part of the vibrant Starkville community.”

More background on Sitel is available at this link.

Aug 12, 2010 9:41 AM

We're in the middle when we need to be in the right

Zero Hedge passes on a Bloomberg chart that shows the unemployment rates of individual states and the level of job creation. Tennessee hugs the center line, which means job growth is next no nil.

Aug 11, 2010 1:16 PM

Nissan supplier growing in Manchester

VIAM Manufacturing, a maker of floor mats for various car companies including Nissan, is investing $4 million to add capacity at its Manchester headquarters. The project will generate 34 jobs at VIAM, which has been in Coffee County since 1999.

Aug 6, 2010 7:28 AM