V,U or W-shaped rebound? temp firms don't C I to I

By Nick Zieminski

NEW YORK, May 8 (Reuters) - Staffing industry executives do not see eye to eye on the question of when the U.S. jobs market will stabilize and start to recover, but they are beginning to position themselves for an eventual upturn.

Until recently, companies that provide employment services and temporary workers were focused on bringing costs in line with demand.

Some are now starting to shift their emphasis, amid tentative signs of recovering demand, staffing CEOs said on Friday after the government's jobs report showed fewer job cuts than expected in April. [ID:nL8142930]

Roy Krause, who heads Spherion Corp (SFN.N: Quote, Profile, Research), does not expect to make any further cost cuts in his business, which he said is on track to cut more than $100 million in expenses this year compared with 2008.

"We think we have our costs pretty well balanced," he said. "With any signs of stability, we're going to begin to invest."

Employers looking for flexibility will turn to temporary workers before they commit to full-time jobs, Krause said, so temporary payrolls should turn up, even as overall unemployment continues to rise.

"We are starting to see some stabilization," he said.

Carl Camden, CEO of Kelly Services Inc (KELYA.O: Quote, Profile, Research), agreed, but added a few weeks of stability do not make a trend.