TORONTO, June 12 (Reuters) – Canadian companies expect to add more employees in the summer months, but the level of hiring intentions is at its weakest level in two years, according to a survey released on Tuesday by ManpowerGroup Inc.

The survey by the Milwaukee, Wisconsin-based staffing services provider, considered a leading indicator of labor market trends, measures the difference between employers who say they will add jobs and those planning cuts.

The latest survey, conducted between April 19 and May 2 with more than 1,900 employers in Canada, revealed 23 percent of respondents said they intended to hire in the July-September quarter, while 5 percent said they would decrease payrolls.

Of the rest, 70 percent said they expected to maintain their current staffing levels and 2 percent were undecided.

Manpower Canada said that after seasonally adjusting the figures, a net 12 percent of employers surveyed plan to hire workers in the third quarter.

That is down from 13 percent in the most recent quarter and 16 percent in the third quarter of 2011. It was the survey’s weakest result since the third quarter of 2010.

“When you look at the past couple of years you can see it’s just flatlining with the employment outlook,” said Byrne Luft, vice president of operations, staffing services for Manpower Canada.