Hudson Employment Index

47% Expect Brighter Job Prospects in New Year

Survey of 1,874 American Workers

December 2-6, 2005

How likely are you to actively look for a new job in 2006?
Very Likely	21%
Somewhat Likely	16%
Not Very Likely	33%
Not at All Likely	29%
RasmussenReports.com

Job Prospects/Employment Situation Better Next Year?
Yes	47%
No	30%
RasmussenReports.com

December 14, 2005--Looking ahead to the new year, 47% of workers expect their job prospects will be better in 2006 than in 2005. A national Hudson survey also found that 3-out-of-5 workers expect to earn more next year than they did this past year. That includes 21 percent who expect to earn significantly more and 42% who say they hope to earn a little more.

The survey also suggests that workers may be more content to stay put in 2006. Twenty-nine percent (29%) report that they have no plans to look for a new job, up from one year ago when only 22% made that claim. Even so, a large portion of the workforce will be on the market, with 37% saying it is very or somewhat likely that they will actively seek new job opportunities in the new year. Last year, that figure was 42%.

“While 2005 was a challenging year on many fronts, U.S. workers continued to show their resilience and optimism heading into the new year,” said Steve Wolfe, executive vice president, Hudson, North America. “We anticipate that 2006 will be a stronger year for worker confidence and for workers’ leverage as they seek to improve their skills and investigate new opportunities.”

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Hudson, one of the world's leading professional staffing, outsourcing and human capital solution providers, also publishes the Hudson Employment Index(SM), a monthly measure of the U.S. workforce's confidence in the employment market.

Rasmussen Reports is an electronic publishing firm specializing in the collection, publication, and distribution of public opinion polling information.

Our publications provide real-time information on consumer confidence, investor confidence, employment data, the political situation, and other topics of value and interest. We provide daily updates on the economic confidence of Consumers and Investors. Our consumer data generally identifies trends two to six weeks ahead of traditional consumer confidence measures.

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This survey of 1,874 Working Americans was conducted by Rasmussen Reports December 2-6, 2005. The margin of sampling error is +/- 1 percentage point with a 95% level of confidence.