Reply #16: It's only anecdotal

[fujiyama]

but after a bit of a slowdown since May, I'm getting quite a few phone calls from recruiters. It's kind of a rough personal gauge of the job market. I just mute the phone because it's at least several calls a day. Someone I know that runs a business ended up with three projects all within the course of 2-3 weeks.

I'd be interested in hearing the numbers for manufacturing, especially of heavy industrial equipment, the automotive sector, and durable goods. Construction would also be a good indicator of a possible improvement in the job market. We may be seeing an uptick here but it will be interesting to see how Gallup's measurement compares with govt. numbers. Anyone have any rough past comparisons of Gallup's numbers with the labor department's?