The Monster Employment Index rose in August, seeing its highest monthly rate of improvement in four years, as a majority of industries, occupations, and regions registered increased online job availability following the slow summer hiring activity. The Index’s annual rate of decline continued to moderate, indicating some signs of improvement in underlying demand for labor nationwide.
The Index is a monthly gauge of U.S. online job demand based on a real-time review of millions of employer job opportunities culled from a large representative selection of corporate career Web sites and job boards, including Monster.
August 2009 Index Highlights:
• Index rises seven points, or 6 percent, the highest monthly rate of increase since August 2005
• Year-over-year decline eases to 24 percent, the most moderate pace of slowdown so far this year
• Retail, administrative and financial industries demonstrate solid growth
• Arts, design, entertainment, sports and media rise among occupations, whereas healthcare, community and personal care and services show softening demand
• New England leads all regions while Portland, OR sees the highest rise on the month amongst the metro markets
“The significant jump in the Monster Employment Index in August offers encouraging signs of improvement in the US economy with the demand for managers and professionals as well as sales and office workers picking up in time for the fall hiring season,” said Jesse Harriott, senior vice president and chief knowledge officer at Monster Worldwide. “The Index is now at its highest since February while showing the most moderate yearly rate of contraction since December 2008.”
During August, online recruitment activity increased in 26 major metro markets and remained flat in two of the 28 markets monitored by the Index. Portland experienced the strongest monthly gain due to an increase in demand for workers in management, IT, arts/design/entertainment and sales.
Opportunities also expanded notably in Boston led by areas such as education/training/library, community/social services and military specific. Baltimore and Orlando were the only two markets to remain flat in August.
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