U.S. Employers Are Reluctant to Hire

"The economy seems so gripped by uncertainties that many employers have decided to manage with the staff they have. They aren't convinced their customer demand will keep growing. Or they worry that Europe's festering debt crisis could infect the global economy. Or they aren't sure what Congress will do, if anything, about taxes and spending in coming months."                              --Jonathan Fahey and Scott Mayerowitz,
                                 reporting for the Associated Press


They also note that

• American employers added a mere 69,000 jobs in May, the fewest in a year

• The federal government is nearing its debt ceiling.

• State and local governments are economizing to shrink their own debts.

• Companies complain that environmental regulations and business subsidies "are hare to predict and plan for"

• Multi-year highway and construction projects are on hold as Congress debates the issue

• The Bush-era tax cuts may be extended but will end without renewing legislation by year-end

• Sales by American manufacturers to Europe are down very significantly in 2012

• The stability of U.S. banks, the trend of the stock market and consumer confidence are all shaky

• The U.S. wind industry is in a flat status or downtrend. An important renewable energy subsidy is set to expire later in 2012. Low natural gas prices are also putting pressure on renewables.

• A KPMG report on technology is not optimistic:

"An April survey of 122 technology executives by KPMG found that employers weren't expecting to expand their payrolls as aggressively this year as they did last year. The main reason: Most of them are bracing for slower revenue growth.
"The fallout from Europe's shaky economy looms as the biggest concern. But slowing economies in Asia are also contributing to a more cautious approach to hiring, said Gary Matuszak of KPMG.

"There's not much confidence in the U.S. economy, either. Thirty percent of the survey respondents predicted that the economy won't fully regain its health until 2014. Thirty-three percent expect it will be 2015 or later before the economy returns to where it was before the financial meltdown of 2008."                              --Jonathan Fahey and Scott Mayerowitz

• The economies of India and China are slowing

• Gasoline demand in the U.S.A. has fallen for sixty-two straight weeks

The AP story is online at:

http://news.yahoo.com/us-employers-waiting-watching-hiring-165106062--finance.html