In the early days of 2013, January 3, to be exact, Randstad released the results of its December U.S. Employee Confidence survey that painted a rosy picture heading into the new year. The Confidence Index was 55.4, one of the highest levels of optimism recorded in 2012.

The Index, which measures employee insights on jobs, the economy, and their personal employment situation, found more workers believe the economy is not only getting stronger, but more jobs are available.

That was then. February 1, Randstad released its findings for January that indicate workers are more concerned about jobs and the economy as the index decreased 3.3 points in January to 52.1. Granted, the index has remained about 50.0 for the past year, but what’s to blame for this decline that’s steeper than any month-to-month comparison in 2012? Care to guess? (more...)