The SFN Group Inc. employee confidence index fell 1.2 points in February to a reading of 48.9. Workers were less confident in the strength of the economy and job availability, but were more optimistic about their job security.

“Although our report shows a decline in overall confidence from the previous month, it is still 6.2 points higher than the low point of 40.1 it registered at one year ago,” said SFN president and CEO Roy Krause.

In February, 23 percent of workers said they believed the economy was getting stronger, down five percentage points from January, according to the index’s survey. And 67 percent said they believed fewer jobs were available in February, up five percentage points from January.

However, 70 percent of workers said they were unlikely to lose their jobs in the next year, down 3 percentage points from January.

The index’s survey questioned 1,286 employed adults in the U.S.

Filed by Staffing Industry Analysts, a sister company of Workforce Management. To comment, e-mail editors@workforce.com.

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