by John Zappe

The pace of hiring will quicken in 2015, as more employers plan to add staff -- permanent and temp -- than at any time since the start of the recession.

Surveys by a trio of organizations found employers generally optimistic about growth in the year ahead, with more of them than at any time in the past seven years planning to add workers.

Released just this morning, CareerBuilder's annual job survey found 36% of employers expect to add permanent, full time staff this year. That's a 50% increase over what employers said at the beginning of 2014.

Even more employers -- 46% versus 42% last year -- say they'll bring on more temporary and contract workers in the year ahead; 56% plan to transition some temporary or contract workers into full-time, permanent roles.

Manpower's Employment Outlook Survey, released early in December, found similar optimism among employers. The global staffing agency's survey of 18,000+ employers found a seasonally adjusted 19% of them plan to add staff in the first quarter alone.

Manpower's Net Employment Outlook of 16% for the quarter ahead is the highest it's been since the first quarter of 2008.