15% of employers in LA and Orange counties plan to add a modest number of new employees after New Year's Day, according to a quarterly survey by Milwaukee-based Manpower, and construction jobs are among the top employment prospects for Q1 2016.

In contrast, 6% are planning layoffs. 78% of employers said they plan to maintain staffing at current levels.

While this is a slight decrease from three months ago, when 17% of employers surveyed planned to add employees, the number of employers planning layoffs dropped significantly over the same period, from 13% to just 6%, according to the LA Business Journal. Overall, net employment outlook (the difference between employers hiring and those laying off) moved up from 4% to 9% since the last survey.

Still, the percentage of LA and OC employers planning to add staff in Q1 is 20% below the national average. The report noted the manufacturing, retail, professional and business services, education and health services sectors are also expected to hire. [LABJ]