By Doug Fletcher,Staff Writer

Lewiston-area employers expect to hire at a strong pace during the remainder of the year, according to Manpower’s quarterly Employment Outlook Survey.

Thirty percent of the region’s companies said they planned to hire more people in October, November and December, said Carol Albert, who heads Manpower’s Auburn office.

The remaining 70 percent said they expect to maintain current staffing levels.

The local forecast is slightly better than national survey findings, but not as strong as a year ago.

“Employers in the Lewiston-Auburn area expect softer hiring conditions than in the third quarter when 43 percent of the companies interviewed intended to add staff, and 7 percent planned to reduce head count,” Albert said in a prepared statement.

For the coming quarter, job prospects appear best in construction, durable and non-durable goods manufacturing and in services, Albert said. Hiring in categories covering transportation/public utilities, wholesale/retail trade, finance/insurance/real estate, education and public administration is expected to remain unchanged.

Manpower’s national survey found that U.S. employers are unwavering in their hiring confidence for the fourth quarter of 2005. For seven straight quarters, the job picture in the United States has been virtually unchanged.

Of the 16,000 employers who were surveyed nationally, 29 percent expected to add to their payrolls during the fourth quarter, while 8 percent planned to reduce staff levels and 57 percent reported no change in hiring intentions. Six percent were unsure of their staffing plans.

The survey was taken prior to Hurricane Katrina, Manpower noted.