Hudson Index: Worker Confidence Drops in April

After a March tax-season spike, worker confidence among accounting and finance workers dropped in April, according to the Hudson Employment Index.

The index for the segment fell 17.6 points last month, to 104. A combination of more workers saying that their finances were getting worse and decreased job satisfaction had the greatest impact on the lower reading. The April 2007 reading for the segment was nearly 7 points lower than the reading of a year ago, 110.8.

The national index, based on responses from approximately 9,000 workers across all sectors, fell 1.5 points, to 107.5 in April.
 
The accounting and finance worker index also revealed that:

  • The number of workers who reported that their finances had worsened increased 11 points in April, to 40 percent;
  • More workers expected to see their company lay off workers in the coming months (20 percent), a six-point drop from March, and the most in nearly a year; and,
  • More workers reported that they were unsatisfied with their job in April (67 percent) than in March (78 percent).

At the national level, the April figure was among the highest in the last 12 months, though the latest reading is essentially level with April 2006, when the index registered 107.7. But despite the nearly identical year-over-year readings, there are quite a few differences in the contributing factors. Significantly fewer workers forecasted layoffs and were concerned about job security this April than a year ago, while there were greater expectations around hiring last April compared to this year.

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