Monster Employment Index Up 7% Year over Year in January; Despite an Unprecedented Decline in Public Administration Sector

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--January 2011 Index Highlights:

• A year of positive annual growth – at 7 percent in January – signaling sustained, measured growth
• All 28 metro markets record positive annual growth in January
• Mining and wholesale trade lead all sectors in annual growth. Professional, scientific, and technical services rises with particularly strong demand for IT and engineering specialists
• Index declines 8 points (6 percent) in January on monthly basis, as employer’s scale back hiring activity following a relatively active December. A seasonal December-January decline has now been recorded for 4 consecutive years
• Public administration records an unprecedented 21 percent annual decline, reaching its lowest annual growth rate in the Index

The Monster Employment 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.com®.

“We’re seeing positive year-over-year growth as economic recovery progresses at a measured pace,” said Jesse Harriott, senior vice president and chief knowledge officer at Monster Worldwide. “Private sector hiring, particularly in IT, business and healthcare occupations has been fueling growth which is encouraging. At the same time cuts in government-related recruitment since December are weighing down on overall growth, but not enough to prevent YoY growth for the first month of 2011.”

JAN 10	FEB 10	MAR 10	APR 10	MAY 10	JUN 10	JUL 10	AUG 10	SEP 10	OCT 10	NOV 10	DEC 10	JAN 11	Y-O-Y GROWTH
114	124	125	133	134	141	138	136	138	136	134	130	122	7%

Industry Year-over-year Trends: 12 of the 20 industries monitored by the Index showed positive annual growth trends.

• Wholesale Trade (up 14 percent) was amongst the top-moving sectors in January, in contrast to seasonal expectations, as sector employers appeared to carry- over their year-end momentum into 2011
• Professional, scientific, and technical services (up 14 percent) remained strong year-over-year, and stable month-over-month due to particularly strong demand for IT and engineering specialists
• Accommodation and food services (down 16 percent) was amongst the slowest growing sectors in the Index following a relatively active month of online hiring activity in December
• Finance and insurance (up 2 percent) remained flat from December on an annual basis, yet demand trends for workers in a number of financial service occupations remained high
• Public administration (down 21 percent) registered the steepest annual decline, with eased job creation for federal and local government

Top Growth Industries

Year-over-year Growth	Jan 10	Jan 11	% Growth Y-o-y
Mining, Quarrying, Oil and Gas Extraction	139	211	52%
Transportation and Warehousing	125	143	14%
Wholesale Trade	121	138	14%
Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services	49	56	14%
Information	68	76	10%

Lowest Growth Industries

Year-over-year Growth	Jan 10	Jan 11	% Growth Y-o-y
Educational Services	82	77	-6%
Real Estate and Rental and Leasing	51	47	-8%
Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing, and Hunting	203	177	-13%
Accommodation and Food Services	94	79	-16%
Public Administration	180	142	-21%

Occupation Year-over-year Trends: Annual online demand for workers rose in 15 of the 23 occupational categories in January.

• Architecture and Engineering (up 16 percent) and Computer and mathematical (up 14 percent) registered improved demand trends with a general escalation in job availability for professionals with advanced technical specializations
• Business and financial operations (up 15 percent) saw improved demand conditions for accountants and financial analysts across a wide range of sectors, across all geographic regions

Top Growth Occupations

Year-over-year Growth	Jan 10	Jan 11	% Growth Y-o-y
Installation, Maintenance, and Repair	116	138	19%
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports and Media	75	89	19%
Architecture and Engineering	75	87	16%
Business and Financial Operations	122	140	15%
Computer and Mathematical	86	98	14%

Lowest Growth Occupations

Year-over-year Growth	Jan 10	Jan 11	% Growth Y-o-y
Education, Training and Library	118	108	-8%
Military Specific	156	137	-12%
Food Preparation and Serving	96	79	-18%
Farming, Fishing, and Forestry	200	162	-19%
Protective Service	84	55	-35%

Geographic year-over-year Trends: All 28 metro markets recorded positive annual growth in January

• Detroit (up 51 percent) and Philadelphia (up 39 percent) continued to remain among top growth markets.
• San Diego (up 8 percent) remained stable year-over-year but recorded a mild monthly decline of 3 percent in January. Online recruitment trends were strongest for production; sales; and arts, design, entertainment, sports, and media related occupations in the long-term
• Among the 50 states and the District, 40 registered annual increases in online job demand.

Top Growth Metro Markets

Year-over-year Growth	Jan 10	Jan 11	% Growth Y-o-y
Detroit	57	86	51%
Philadelphia	36	50	39%
Minneapolis	68	89	31%
Chicago	55	71	29%
Orlando	36	46	28%

Lowest Growth Metro Markets

Year-over-year Growth	Jan 10	Jan 11	% Growth Y-o-y
Phoenix	60	66	10%
Houston	97	106	9%
San Diego	60	65	8%
Washington, D.C.	38	41	8%
Baltimore	38	40	5%

International Trends:

• Monster Employment Index Europe continued a steady positive annual growth rate (up 22 percent in December) ending the year with relatively strengthened demand for production; manufacturing and transportation/ logistics sectors. Germany continued to be the strongest overall creator of job opportunities in Europe
• Monster Employment Index India annual growth rate accelerated to 27 percent in December 2010, with demand picking notably for the IT sector. Several other categories including banking/ finance and engineering continued to exhibit strong long-term growth

To obtain a full copy of the Monster Employment Index report for January 2011, and to access current individual data charts for each of the 28 metro markets tracked, please visit http://about-monster.com/employment-index. Data for the month of February 2011 will be released on March 3, 2011.

About the Monster Employment Index

Launched in April 2004 with data collected since October 2003, the Monster Employment Index is a broad and comprehensive monthly analysis of U.S. online job demand conducted by Monster Worldwide, Inc. Based on a real-time review of millions of employer job opportunities culled from a large, representative selection of corporate career sites and job boards, including Monster, the Monster Employment Index presents a snapshot of employer online recruitment activity nationwide. All of the data and findings in the Monster Employment Index have been validated for their accuracy through independent, third party auditing conducted periodically by Research America, Inc. The audit validates the accuracy of the online job recruitment activity measured within a margin of error of +/- 1.05%.

About Monster Worldwide

Monster Worldwide, Inc. (NYSE: MWW), parent company of Monster®, the premier global online employment solution for more than a decade, strives to bring people together to advance their lives. With a local presence in key markets in North America, Europe, and Asia, Monster works for everyone by connecting employers with quality job seekers at all levels and by providing personalized career advice to consumers globally. Through online media sites and services, Monster delivers vast, highly targeted audiences to advertisers. Monster Worldwide is a member of the S&P 500 Index. To learn more about Monster's industry-leading products and services, visit www.monster.com. More information about Monster Worldwide is available at http://about-monster.com/.

Special Note: Safe Harbor Statement Under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995: Except for historical information contained herein, the statements made in this release constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Such forward-looking statements involve certain risks and uncertainties, including statements regarding Monster Worldwide, Inc.'s strategic direction, prospects and future results. Certain factors, including factors outside of Monster Worldwide's control, may cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in the forward- looking statements, including economic and other conditions in the markets in which Monster Worldwide operates, risks associated with acquisitions, competition, seasonality and the other risks discussed in Monster Worldwide's Form 10-K and other filings made with the Securities and Exchange Commission, which discussions are incorporated in this release by reference.

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