Employee Confidence Dips in March

April 5, 2011 – The SFN Group Employee Confidence Index has decreased 2.2 points to 51.4 in March. The Index, which measures workers' confidence in their personal employment situation and optimism in the economic environment, reveals a dip in overall confidence among workers, specifically in regards to confidence in the strength of the economy. Twenty-four percent of U.S. workers believe the economy is getting stronger, decreasing five percentage points from February. More than half of workers (56 percent) believe there are fewer jobs available, up five percentage points from last month. Sixty-three percent of workers are confident in the future of their current employer, increasing two percentage points from the previous month. Forty percent of workers are confident in their ability to find a new job, showing no change from February. “Although worker optimism in the overall economic strength has dipped, it doesn't appear to have greatly influenced confidence in their personal employment situation,” said Roy Krause, president and CEO of SFN Group. “Workers lack of confidence in the economy may in part be a result of recent global events, such as the Japan devastation, nuclear crisis and rising gas prices.” The online survey was conducted by Harris Interactive on behalf of the SFN Group. It surveyed 1,233 employed U.S. adults, aged 18 and over between March 16 and 18, 2011.