The Hudson Employment Index dropped to 91.9 points, the lowest ever for this gauge. The November reading was lower than the 100.8 in October and 105.3 a year ago.
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Worker confidence stumbled to a record low in November, reflecting growing pessimism over jobs and personal finances stemming from housing and credit troubles, a survey released on Wednesday shows.
The Hudson Employment Index dropped to 91.9 points, the lowest ever for this gauge. The November reading was lower than the 100.8 in October and 105.3 a year ago.
"Simply put, U.S. workers are worried that job growth is going to slow significantly in the coming months," Robert Morgan, co-president of recruitment and talent management at job placement firm Hudson Highland Group <HHGP.O>, said in a statement.
Economists also downgraded their view on the U.S. labor market; they expect companies likely added 75,000 jobs last month, less than half of the amount in October, according to a recent Reuters poll.
!ADVERTISEMENT!The government will release its November payroll report at 8:30 a.m. (1330 GMT) on Friday.
Among the survey's components, the number of workers who anticipate hiring at their companies fell 3 points to 25 percent, a record low, in November.
The share of workers surveyed who expect their employer to shed jobs rose last month by 2 percentage points to 17 percent, the highest level in two years, Hudson said.
In addition to job fears, workers have grown increasingly worried about their household finances. Only 34 percent of workers say their personal finances were improving, down 5 points from October and down 8 points from a year earlier.
"They remain concerned about finance-related issues, but that apprehension has boiled over, so they are now seeing a more widespread problem," Morgan said.
(Reporting by Richard Leong; editing by Jonathan Oatis)
