Poll: Workers report most job creation in 19 months

On the eve of the release of May employment figures, nearly 30 percent of all U.S. workers are reporting that their companies were hiring last month. 

U.S. employment hit the highest level in 19 months, with 28 percent of employees reporting their companies are hiring, up 5 percentage points since January. Meanwhile, 21 percent said their firms were letting people go, down three percentage points, according to Gallup's Job Creation Index, released this week. 

Friday's jobs report could reflect an increase of more than 500,000 jobs in May. 

The poll also shows positive trends in all regions of the country, with the South reporting the strongest conditions — hiring reached 31 percent, up 10 percentage points, and firing hit 21 percent. The South benefits from the energy industry but that situation could change based on the economic effects of the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. 

The Midwest and East are reporting similar trends, each with 28 percent reporting hiring. The Midwest made slightly better strides — bolstered by strong manufacturing — with the hiring-firing gap reaching 9 points, while the East's gap was up 7 percentage points in May. 

The manufacturing sector has been growing at a faster-than-expected rate for the past several months. 

In the West, hiring improved slightly to 25 percent while firing was down to 23 percent, the best measure of the jobs market since November 2008. Manufacturing and exports are lending a hand in the West, as well as improvement in local housing conditions.