Monster Employment Index Flat in Sept.

By: E&P Staff The Monster Employment Index was flat in September at 186 compared to August. In September 2006, the index stood at 172.

"With payrolls declining for the first time in four years in August, signs of upward pressure on the unemployment rate and a slowing worker turnover rate, U.S. online recruitment appears to have leveled off somewhat over the past three months," Steve Pogorzelski, an executive vice president at Monster Worldwide, said in a statement.

Overall, 11 of the 20 industries and nine of the 23 occupational categories tracked experienced a rise in online job availability.

"While online opportunities for white-collar occupations in general, and the financial sector in particular, eased further in September, the index has yet to show any dramatic adverse impact on demand for workers in the broader service sector as a result of the sub-prime mortgage fallout," Pogorzelski said.

Four of the nine regions tracked reported job increases. The West North Central region showed the sharpest gain while the Pacific region posted the largest decline.

The state of New Mexico had the highest rate of job increases in September while California and Massachusetts experienced the biggest drops. Year-over-year, Texas remains the index's top growth state.

The index is based on 1,500 different employer job sites including Monster.