Here’s a sobering reminder of how things are going in this year of the Big, Bad Economic Downturn: More than 60 percent of  the organizations recently surveyed by staffing services provider Veritude say they are “using the recession as an opportunity to replace poor performing employees,” given the abundance of candidates in the current job market.

The report, “The New Normal: Recession Response and Workforce Planning,” can be downloaded at Veritude’s Web site. It’s an interesting look into how HR and procurement professionals across America are dealing with the ongoing recession. The average company size in the survey was around 12,000 employees, and some of the other noteworthy findings include the following:

• Sixty-two percent of companies surveyed say they have laid off employees as a “direct response to the current economic climate.”
• Only 22 percent of the companies have turned to lowered wages as a response to the recession, while 18 percent have reduced benefits and 10 percent have resorted to furloughs.
• Nearly one-third of companies have implemented a variety of other responses, and these include hiring and salary freezes; spending restrictions (“particularly on travel and supplies”); increased scrutiny on contracts and getting more competitive bids; labor relations work; and re-evaluating relationships with partners.

But the survey also offered this ever-so-slight glimmer of hope: “[Although] layoffs and cost-cutting have been dramatic … for many companies that reactive stage has come to an end; they have pruned their expenses and employee base and are now looking to build the foundations of recovery.”

That doesn’t mean a huge increase in staff hiring, however.

The survey found that “the current recession has impacted the manner in which HR professionals operate, as 38 percent shared that their staffing models will not revert to what was used in the past.  In fact, in seeking more flexibility in cutting staff when necessary, 33 percent of respondents are considering increased reliance on contingent staff” instead of permanent workers.

“This pronounced economic crisis has pushed many companies into analyzing and reshaping their staffing models. Our study indicated that while layoffs are a knee-jerk first response, to remain competitive it makes far more sense for companies to replace minimal achievers with higher achievers,” said Joe Collins, senior vice president of Veritude, in a press release accompanying the survey result.

Here’s my 2 cents on all of this: Yes, we knew the downturn was bad and the economy was terrible, but sometimes it takes a survey like this to really get a clear understanding of how bad the current U.S. labor market really is and how far we seem to be from a recovery. Those forecasts of things picking up in late 2009 or early 2010 are now looking a lot more like 2010 at the earliest—and more likely to be later than sooner.

The Veritude study is worth reading, especially if you want a realistic view of what has happened and just where things are going with the nation’s workforce. But it’s not light reading. It’s a sobering reminder of the how things are, without any sugar coating.

Don’t say I didn’t warn you.

Get my latest blog updates and workforce management news by following me on Twitter.