(RTTNews) - Robert Half International Inc. (RHI: News ), the world's largest specialized staffing firm, said Wednesday after the markets closed that its third quarter profit dropped 86% from last year, as revenue from its staffing operations declined amid a challenging global business environment.

The Menlo Park, California-based company reported net income for the third quarter of $9.5 million or $0.06 per share, compared to $65.8 million or $0.42 per share for the year-ago quarter.

On average, 15 analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected the company to earn $0.04 per share for the third quarter.

Selling, general and administrative expenses for the quarter fell 33% to $248.9 million from $374.1 million in the prior year quarter.

Revenue for the third quarter fell 37% to $725.91 million from $1.16 billion in the same quarter last year. Twelve analysts had a consensus revenue estimate of $734.78 million for the third quarter.

Harold Messmer, Jr., chairman and CEO of Robert Half International, said, "While the global business environment during the third quarter remained challenging, year-over-year revenue declines in our staffing operations continued to moderate and, on a sequential basis, we saw some improvement in revenues in September."

For the first nine months, the company reported net income of $23.7 million or $0.15 per share, compared to $211.2 million or $1.33 per share for the same period last year.
Revenue for the nine-month period fell to $2.30 billion from $3.61 billion in the prior year period.

The recession played havoc on staffing firms worldwide. Companies cut hundreds of thousands of jobs and hiring almost came to standstill. With the global economy improving recently, the prospect of job markets has also brightened. The pace of job losses in the U.S. has slowed since the spring.

New research from Monster.com and Human Capital Institute reveals a dramatic difference in how employers and workers perceive the impact of the current recession, potentially leading to employers facing mass talent drains as the labor market begins to turn. Employers surveyed understood that their workforce is likely to be stressed and suffering from poor morale due to the recession, but the data indicate an underestimation of its effect on the workforce.

Earlier Wednesday, Manpower Inc. (MAN) reported a wider third quarter loss and 26% drop in quarterly revenues.

Robert Half shares, which have traded in a range of $14.06 to $28.06 over the past year, closed Wednesday's regular trading session at $24.73, down $1.67 or 6.33% but gained 2 cents in after hours trading.

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by RTT Staff Writer

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