MCLEAN, Va., Oct. 28 /PRNewswire/ -- The immediate reaction of companies, in a slumping U.S. economy, is to pull back on hiring activity, declare hiring freezes and even make layoff announcements. But these are only short-lived strategies as employers soon realize that they are deficient on talent in a competitive job market, according to Jobfox CEO Rob McGovern, author of The Recession: A Silver Lining for Corporate Recruiters, a new Jobfox white paper.

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"After a period of reactionary cutting and freezing, hiring activity will return to a level of normalcy that closely replicates the hiring levels experienced during the first half of 2008," said McGovern. "Hiring is largely a function of 'job churn' and we see no evidence that churn will do anything but accelerate in the coming quarters."

McGovern's white paper is available at http://gw.vtrenz.net/?N5I73492O2 .

Jobfox, a career site that scientifically matches job skills to job requirements, is also conducting a survey to learn more about the economy's impact on hiring plans and activities. Complete the survey at http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=J7zm34V_2fpYzqMKIsPYEpJQ_3d_3d.

Churn as the Status Quo

Churn is the result of continuous movement among workers. In other words: workers quit, retire, get fired, find new jobs, return to school, move to new locations, etc. - even during a recession. In fact, today's professionals - on average - change jobs every three years, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Churn can often accelerate during economic hardships, McGovern noted. "Like star athletes who don't want to play for losing teams, top professionals seek out opportunities to play for more successful organizations. After all, who wants their hard work and dedication during a recession to be rewarded with a pink slip?"

McGovern, in his white paper, cites the downturn of 2001 as an important guide for what recruiters and job seekers can expect of the job market in the months ahead. As CEO of one of the country's largest job boards at that time, McGovern witnessed a dramatic reduction in the number of online job listings in September 2001, on the heels of the tragic events of 9/11. But by the end of the year, job postings were at a record high.

"Worker churn continues and often accelerates when overall business growth slows," McGovern said. "It's a nice fantasy, often held by CFOs, that the addition of new headcount can be frozen to cut costs. But when a star sales person leaves, a key technologist calls it quits and the receptionist bolts, managers have to backfill to keep their business running."

About Jobfox

Jobfox is the Internet's fastest-growing career site for connecting working professionals with corporate recruiters. A first-of-its-kind capability, Jobfox Intros(TM) gives candidates a "foot in the door" by making personal introductions with matching employers. With My Jobfox Connections(TM), employers maintain automatically updated talent networks for filling immediate hiring needs as well as maintaining longer-term relationships with top candidates. Jobfox provides recruiters with high levels of control to match candidates with specific job qualifications, helping companies save time and money. Visit www.jobfox.com today. Jobfox also invites you to visit its career blog at www.bettermondays.com.

About Rob McGovern

Jobfox is the inspiration of CEO Rob McGovern, one of the nation's leading career experts. McGovern is the founder and former CEO of CareerBuilder and the author of "Bring Your 'A' Game: The 10 Career Secrets of the High Achiever."

Jobfox is a trademark of the company. All other company names are trademarks or registered trademarks of the respective companies.

    For more information about Jobfox and the job market:
    Barry Lawrence
    blawrence@jobfox.com
    703.748.0162 x1106

SOURCE Jobfox