- The Kronos Retail Labor Index: (This index is defined as the ratio of hires to applicants within a given month, expressed as a percentage. A level of 3.0 percent means that for every 100 applications received, three hires occurred). The Kronos Retail Labor Index edged down to 3.6 percent in July 2011 from a revised 3.8 percent in June 2011, as an increase in hires was outpaced by an even larger gain in applications, all on a seasonally adjusted basis.
- Retail Hiring Level: The retailers representing 14,625 distributed locations across the U.S. that make up the Kronos® data sample recorded 40,070 hires in July 2011, up from a revised 37,388 hires in June 2011, all on a seasonally adjusted basis.
- Retail Applications Level: The number of applications received by retailers in the Kronos sample rose to 1,103,164 in July 2011, from a revised 976,073 in June 2011, all on a seasonally adjusted basis. The increase in July reversed most of June’s sharp decline, with applications received in July roughly 4 percent higher than one year ago.
- Retail 60-Day Retention Rate: The 60-day retention rate, measured as the number of hires who remain employed for at least the first 60 days divided by the total number of hires made in that month, was essentially unchanged at 84.2 percent in March, approximately where it has been for the past two months, all on a seasonally adjusted basis. (Note: There is a four-month lag on this indicator as two months are required to measure whether a hire remained employed for 60 days and Kronos customers have two months to return data on separations.)
Supporting Quotes
- Chris Varvares, senior managing director and co-founder, Macroeconomic Advisers
“The Kronos Retail Labor Index edged down to 3.6 percent in July, but reflected a strong gain in hiring to a level that is the second-highest reading in more than three years. The uptick in hiring is encouraging, and hints at retailer confidence in a forthcoming pickup in retail sales following the late spring / early summer slowing. While the Kronos Retail Labor Index has strengthened from a low of 2.3 percent over the last year and a half, the improvement has been gradual, with readings still below pre-recession levels. Gradual improvement in the Index is in line with trends in national retail employment, which has also shown only modest gains over the last year or so, especially in light of the sharp declines experienced during the recession and early recovery period.”
