We all know that the U.S. economy has been in the doldrums for several years now. And anyone who pays close attention to the news has seen mixed signs as to whether or not things are getting better. One of the best ways to tell whether or not the economy is improving is to look at hiring numbers. And you can bet that the people of Marion County, Fla will be keenly aware of the hiring figures that will soon be provided by call center company Sitel.

Sitel made an agreement with the city of Ocala, which is located in Marion County, stating that the company would make a good-faith effort to hire 150 full-time employees to its call center by the end of 2012. The agreement was part of an incentive package agreed upon by Sitel and the city of Ocala. The package offers Sitel an incentive of $250,000 per year over the next 10 years in exchange for the creation of 500 new jobs.

“The 150 jobs is, essentially, a target in the agreement,” Marc Mondell, executive director of Community Development for the city told Ocala.com. “In other words, it was not a number that was a requirement of the company. We put it in there as an indicator.”

According to the agreement, Sitel will provide these 500 jobs by no later than December 31, 2014. To show that it has made progress toward fulfilling that part of the agreement, it will provide the city with documentation outlining its new call center hires by no later than the end of this month.

The new Sitel call center was opened in the city and the company signed a 15 year lease for the space, with a right to terminate every three years.

Want to learn more about the latest in communications and technology? Then be sure to attend ITEXPO Miami 2013, Jan 29- Feb. 1 in Miami, Florida.  Stay in touch with everything happening at ITEXPO (News - Alert). Follow us on Twitter.