Demand for temporary workers is set to decrease in the US by 3.8%, according to the latest employment prediction from the Palmer Forecast.

The Palmer Forecast predicts a 13.7% decline in temporary help for Q4, less than the actual figure of 12.8% decline due to lower than expected unemployment figures and solid GDP growth.

Greg Palmer, founder and chief executive of staffing industry consulting firm G. Palmer & Associates, says:”Our 2010 first quarter forecast, as expected, shows improvement, but will likely produce a slight decrease in demand for temporary workers,

marking 12 consecutive quarters of declines.

“Despite yet another decline, labour markets are showing early signs of improvement. The narrowing year-over-year declines are quite meaningful when compared with temp labour declines as high as 28.4% in April and 23.5% as of September.

“We expect to see the unemployment rate continue to remain high for the foreseeable future.”