Fort Myers job market sizzles

Employer surveys may be a good indicator of future economic conditions, but it's important to temper those with actual data, too.

For example, temporary help firm Manpower recently reported that the employment outlook for the first three months of 2015 in the Cape Coral-Fort Myers area is the best in the nation.

From January to March, Manpower says 34% of employers in the Cape Coral-Fort Myers area plan to hire staff and just 2% plan layoffs. That's the best in the nation among the survey participants, Manpower says.

While that's welcome news, it's also important to remember that seasonal hiring may skew the data. Hotels, restaurants and other businesses that cater to winter visitors typically staff up in the first quarter of the year.

In addition, the latest employment data from the state don't suggest massive hiring in the area. Employment in the Cape Coral-Fort Myers area in November rose just 1.4% year over year, well below the 2.9% statewide growth over the same period. In fact, the biggest employment jump in the region in November was North Port-Sarasota-Bradenton's 4.1% annual increase.