The number of planned layoffs in the United States fell in June after rising for two straight months, but the level of planned hirings also fell in June, according to a report on Tuesday.
Outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas Inc., said planned job cuts fell to 64,343, down from May’s 73,368 but up 8 percent from a year ago. Last month’s job cuts were the lowest since the 59,715 recorded in June 2002.
Corporate hirings, which Challenger began tracking in May, fell to 38,377 workers, down 31 percent from May’s 55,307.
“The decline in June job cuts is good news, but it would not be surprising to see a rise in monthly job-cut announcements during the second half of the year,” John Challenger, the firm’s chief executive officer said in a statement. He also noted that job grow may be slower for the foreseeable future.
On Friday, the Labor Department said June U.S. non-farm payrolls grew by 112,000 jobs, less than half the level economists had forecast. Job gains in April and May were revised lower.
In Challenger’s report, the financial services sector reduced 7,685 jobs in June, the most among U.S. industries. The telecommunciations industry was second with 6,962 layoffs, and the government/non-profit sector was third with 6,386, Challenger said.
The financial services sector also cut the most jobs in the first six months during which employers announced 54,332 jobs, Challenger said. It was followed by the industrial goods sector with 49,481 layoffs.
Second-quarter job cuts totaled 209,895, down from 274,737 for the same quarter in 2003 and the lowest quarterly figure since the third quarter of 2000, Challenger said.
Historically, the second quarter is the slowest quarter for layoffs, followed by the summer quarter. Challenger said.
Based on recent data, if the trend of a fourth-quarter surge in job cuts is repeated this year, it could show up in the November elections, the firm said.
Challenger attributed slower job growth to companies being selective with whom they hire and the desire of management to squeeze more productivity from their existing workforce.
In a sign of companies’ reluctance to hire aggressively, the Northbrook, Illinois-based firm said the average job seeker takes 20 weeks, or about five months, to find employment, just a bit below the record 20.3 weeks in February.
