Monster Employment Index Rises Sharply in February

Index Shows Greater Online Job Availability
across Majority of Industries, Occupations, and Regions

Retail Trade and Mining Industries Climb to New Highs, Suggesting

Strong Consumer Economies and Shortage of Miners, Respectively

Demand for Public Administration Workers Jumps in Advance of Tax Season,

While Opportunities for Construction and Management Workers Also Rise

February 2006 Index Highlights:
Index surges six points to 157 in February, continuing solid, two-month growth trend

Monthly data shows greater number of online

opportunities for white-collar and blue-collar workers alike
Online demand for management workers jumps as businesses staff up due to expanding economy

Online job availability for construction workers spikes, following one of the warmest months of January on record

All nine U.S. Census Bureau regions and a majority of states register growth

The Monster Employment Index moved sharply higher in February, as a majority of industries, occupations, and all nine U.S. Census Bureau regions registered increased online job availability during the month. For the second consecutive month, the Index shot up six points, demonstrating strong, stepwise growth in online hiring activity, largely driven by increased demand for workers in construction and management. On a year over year basis, the Index was up 35 points, or 29 percent, in February ñ a rate of growth slightly above the 2005 monthly average of 27 percent.

Elevated demand for workers across much of the country in February helped drive the Index to its highest level since inception, as online job availability rose for white-collar and blue-collar workers alike. The Index showed increased online recruitment across a spectrum of industries and occupations, including architecture and engineering; life, physical and social sciences; installation, maintenance, and repair; and mining.

ìOverall, the U.S. labor market is off to a very solid start in 2006 as strong business fundamentals continue to boost employer demand for workers, creating more job opportunities and driving the unemployment rate down to well below 5 percent,î said Steve Pogorzelski, Group President, International at Monster Worldwide. ìDemand for workers in the U.S. remains elevated at the outset of the year, while the online migration of help-wanted advertising continues at a rapid pace. The Indexís findings for February clearly indicate greater confidence among employers throughout much of the country, largely due to the underlying strength of the economy. This is encouraging news for job seekers and bodes well for this yearís class of college graduates as they begin their search for employment.î

Construction Industry Rebounds Strongly from Seasonal Dip, Showing Greater Online Demand for Workers in February
The construction industry showed a significant spike in online demand for workers in February, indicating a strong rebound from the decline registered during the prior two months. This is likely due in part to a more accommodating climate, as much of the country experienced some of the warmest winter temperatures on record in January.

Opportunities for workers in public administration also registered sharp growth last month, in advance of the approaching spring tax season, while demand in the mining industry reached a new high, driven by a continued shortage of workers and higher demand for alternative energy. Overall, online job demand for workers rose in 18 of 20 industries during February, with strong growth measured in:

Management of companies and enterprises, which surged in February, ending a four-month downward trend;

Wholesale trade and retail trade, both of which showed significantly higher online demand for workers, likely due to the positive effect of warmer-than-expected weather on consumer shopping activity; and

Information technology, which registered the highest level of online recruitment activity to date, suggesting continued demand for U.S. technology workers, despite the growing trend among American companies of outsourcing technology work overseas.

Online Demand for Management Professionals Jumps in February, Indicating Increased Executive Recruitment

Online demand for management occupations rose sharply in February ñ largely due to greater employer confidence about the expanding economy, which has yielded strong balance sheets across corporate America, and likely spurred businesses to staff up across the ranks. Opportunities for workers in protective service also grew, while demand for military related workers retracted slightly, following a significant surge in January. Overall online demand for workers rose in 18 of 23 occupational categories in February, with particularly strong growth noted in the following occupations:

Construction and extraction, which showed a marked rise in online recruitment activity during the month, echoing the demand seen in the construction industry, likely due to warmer-than-expected winter weather;

Building and grounds cleaning and maintenance, which registered a strong increase for workers, likely due to companies gearing up for the coming spring months; and

Architecture and Engineering, which also saw strong growth in demand for technically skilled workers, continuing a mostly upward trend over the last nine months.

Mountain Region Registers Steepest Increase in February, Driven by Booming Metro Areas

For the second consecutive month, online job availability for workers increased in all nine U.S. Census Bureau regions in February, indicating broad growth in recruitment activity at the start of 2006. The Mountain region registered the sharpest rate of growth last month, driven by flourishing metro areas such as Phoenix, Las Vegas, Denver and Salt Lake City. Forty-four U.S. states and the District of Columbia saw increases of varying degrees during February, with Louisiana, Arizona, Mississippi and Connecticut among those registering the greatest gains. Demand for workers in Louisiana and Mississippi remained strong amid continued reconstruction efforts underway in the Gulf Coast. In fact, online hiring in the West South Central region has now surged over 40 percent over the past 12 months, primarily due to heavy demand for workers following Hurricane Katrina. Overall, the Indexís data shows stronger growth in the Western and Southern regions of the country over the past year than in the Midwest and Northeast regions.

To obtain a full copy of the Monster Employment Index report for February 2006, including all charts and tables, please visit http://www.monsterworldwide.com/Press_Room/MEI.html. Data for the month of March 2006 will be released on April 6, 2006.