U.S. companies' hiring intentions for the first quarter of 2006 look relatively strong, continuing a pattern that began two years ago, according to a quarterly survey Manpower Inc. plans to release today.

The employment-services company's survey of 16,000 employers found 61% expected to make no change in the size of their work forces compared with the current quarter; 23% expect to increase hiring. Of those surveyed, 10% said they expect to cut payrolls, and 6% were unsure. The percentage of those who expect no change is up slightly from expectations leading into the quarter, but Jeffrey Joerres, chairman and chief executive of Manpower, said it is too early to tell what that could mean. Employers often are cautious about hiring at the start of a year, he said.

Still, the forecast for January through March marks the eighth consecutive quarter that hiring expectations have signs of strength, with a seasonally adjusted 20% of employers, on a net basis, saying they plan to add to their payrolls, according to Milwaukee-based Manpower. The net employment outlook reflects the difference between the percentage of employers who expect to add to payrolls and those who expect to reduce them.

The survey indicates employers aren't looking to aggressively ramp up hiring but still see demand, prompting many of them to continue adding employees. "When you look at the national picture, this is relatively good news," Mr. Joerres said.

Compared with expectations a year earlier, employers in five of 10 sectors expressed waning confidence about hiring in the coming quarter, Manpower said. However, despite concerns about a possible housing bubble, the construction sector topped the list for expected increases in hiring, with its most optimistic forecast in 27 years, Mr. Joerres said. The construction sector's confidence extended beyond the South, where rebuilding from Hurricane Katrina is under way. In the West, for example, a third of construction employers said they expect to hire next quarter.

Employers in the South and the West expressed stronger hiring expectations than in the current quarter, while those in the Northeast expected the pace of hiring to slow, according to the survey. The Midwest showed little change in its expectations.