CHELMSFORD, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Kronos^(R) Incorporated today announced the October release of the Kronos Retail Labor Index(TM), a family of metrics and indices that analyze the relationship between the demand and supply sides of the labor market within the U.S. retail sector, and provide a distinct and early indicator of the overall state of the retail sector. The October release includes data through the end of August 2009. The October report is available on the Kronos Retail Labor Index website.

News Facts

• The Kronos Retail Labor Index: (This metric is defined as the percentage of job applications that result in a hiring, normalized within a scale of 0 to 100.) The Kronos Retail Labor Index increased slightly in August to 3.00 percent, up from 2.99 percent in July. This is the highest the Index has been since December of 2008. A level of 3.00 percent means that for every 100 applications received, three hirings occurred.
• Retail Hiring Level: The 68 retailers, representing 27,034 distributed locations across the U.S., who make up the Kronos data sample, recorded 42,861 hirings in August 2009. This is an increase of 2.8 percent from July, and represents the eighth straight monthly increase in the hiring rate.
• Retail Applications Level: The supply of applications increased as well, by 2.1 percent from July, to 1,433,508, representing the eighth straight monthly increase in the application rate.
• Retail Employee Retention Rate: Continuing the trend of increased employee retention, the 60-day retention rate for August 2009 was 4.2 percent higher than it was in August of 2008; however the rate of increase slowed in August for the first time since January 2008.

Supporting Quotes

• Dr. Robert Yerex, Ph.D., chief economist, Kronos

"It was encouraging to see the Kronos Retail Labor Index increase to 3.00 percent in August - up 0.33 percent relative to July. We believe this continued stabilization and tentative recovery in the Index signals the beginning of stabilization in the overall U.S. economy and will be reflected in other measures of the economy in the coming months."

"The Kronos Retail Labor Index shows great potential for being a leading economic indicator. Recent results from the University of Michigan's Consumer Sentiment Index and the U.S. Department of Commerce's report on retail and food services sales levels mirror the changes that the Kronos Retail Labor Index foreshadowed."

Supporting Resources

• Organizations that use Kronos hiring solutions employ approximately 15 percent of the U.S. consumer retail labor market, providing Kronos with a unique set of data on employee job applications, hirings, and length of service.
• The Kronos Retail Labor Index is released on a monthly basis. Go to www.kronos.com/retail-labor-index to access: the full report; a schedule of upcoming Index release dates; the Index methodology; and downloadable graphics.
• To listen to an Audio News Release about the Kronos Retail Labor Index go to: http://www.kronos.com/Audio/RETAILW3.mp3
• Note to reporters: cite Index findings as "Kronos Retail Labor Index".

About the Kronos Retail Labor Index

The Kronos Retail Labor Index is a family of metrics and indices that analyze the relationship between the demand and the supply sides of the labor market within the U.S. retail sector. It is derived from a single, unified data set, allowing for statistically appropriate comparisons and time series-based trending analysis. Firms that use Kronos hiring solutions employ approximately 15 percent of the U.S. consumer retail labor market, providing Kronos with a unique set of data on employee job applications, hirings, and length of service. The Kronos Retail Labor Index provides a distinct and early indicator of the health of the retail sector.

About Kronos Incorporated

Kronos is the global leader in workforce management solutions that enable organizations to control labor costs, minimize compliance risk, and improve workforce productivity. Tens of thousands of organizations in 60 countries -- including more than half of the Fortune 1000^(R) -- use Kronos time and attendance, scheduling, absence management, HR and payroll, hiring, and labor analytics applications. To learn how Kronos uniquely delivers complete automation and high-quality information in an easy-to-use solution, visit www.kronos.com.

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(C) 2009 Kronos Incorporated. Kronos is a registered trademark and Kronos Retail Labor Index is a trademark of Kronos Incorporated or a related company. All other trademarks are property of their respective owners.

Kronos Incorporated

Laura Souza, 978-947-4777

laura.souza@kronos.com

Source: Kronos

<<Business Wire -- 10/08/2009>>