SANTA CLARA -- Growing numbers of Silicon Valley workers are getting coal in their stockings this holiday season, according to the latest monthly business survey released Thursday by Santa Clara University.

The monthly Santa Clara University Business Index asked Silicon Valley executives and managers this month about holiday spending by local companies and themselves.

The survey found that 61 percent said their company was not holding a holiday party, 75 percent were not giving any paid time off, 58 percent report their employer was spending less this holiday season than last year, 60 percent plan less holiday spending in their households, 10 percent plan to spend more, and only 7 percent expect to receive a holiday bonus.

While companies may be tightening their belts this holiday season, the December survey by SCU's Leavey School of Business also showed that Silicon Valley executives and managers continue to be slightly optimistic about their business prospects in the next six months.

The index also "suggests that investors and firms were still guarded about the prospects for a revival in the next six months," said SCU economist Kris Mitchener.

"Signs of this abound in the valley. Employment has yet to turn around. Sales of chip-making equipment have shown recent gains, but orders, reflecting future purchases, remain soft at best," Mitchener said.

The Santa Clara University Business Index debuted in October after a year of development. The survey has been tabulating results since February 2002 to affirm its validity and establish trends.

The new monthly business indicator, the only one of its kind for the Silicon Valley region, is a composite index that tracks business conditions in Silicon Valley companies and their markets each month, as well as trends in job availability in the region, by polling the area's executives and managers.