Fourteen of 28 U.S. Metro Markets See Decline in Online Job Demand in July, Reflecting Seasonal Slowdown in Hiring

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 18, 2005--Monster Worldwide, Inc. (NASDAQ: MNST):

  • Detroit Metro Area Sees Greatest Month-to-Month Increase in Online Job Availability, According to Monster Local Employment Index
  • Online Demand for Military Occupations Increases Across Most Markets, Reflecting Stepped-Up Recruitment Efforts
  • Demand for Production Workers Declines in Most Markets, Reflecting Broader Weakness in Manufacturing

Online job recruitment activity and related employment opportunities declined in 14 of the top 28 U.S. metropolitan areas in July, according to the latest findings of the Monster Local Employment Index. Providing a broad, comprehensive monthly analysis of online job demand in the top 28 U.S. metro markets, the Monster Local Employment Index is an extension of the national Monster Employment Index, which is compiled each month by researchers at Monster Worldwide, Inc. (NASDAQ: MNST), parent company of the leading global online career and recruitment resource, Monster(R).

Individual Monster Local Employment Index reports containing July data for each of the 28 metro markets, as well as additional information on occupational demand in each area, are now available at http://LocaleIndex.monsterworldwide.com.

The Detroit metro area saw the greatest month-to-month increase in online job availability in July, rising three points and continuing a two-month growth trend. White-collar jobs within management; business and financial operations; and computer and mathematical occupations all saw strong growth in online job demand in the Detroit market, while production occupations remained flat.

Eight other markets edged higher in July, with four of them - Cincinnati, Minneapolis, Seattle and Washington, D.C. - seeing a rise in online job demand for the second consecutive month. Five markets - Boston, Chicago, Houston, Portland and St. Louis - remained unchanged in July from their June levels, while fourteen other markets saw declines of varying degrees during the month. Miami and Orlando experienced the sharpest declines in July, coming off sharp increases in June. Only Indianapolis showed a downward trend, declining for the second straight month.

"The July findings of the Monster Local Employment Index show a decline in online job demand in half of the markets tracked by the Index, most likely reflecting a seasonal slowdown following the strong online hiring activity that took place in June," said Steve Pogorzelski, president of Monster, North America. "However, the fact that nine markets saw online demand increase and five held steady during what is typically a slow month for hiring, speaks to the growing strength and stability of the broader U.S. job market, which added 207,000 new jobs in July and maintained an unemployment rate of just five percent."

Increased Online Demand for Military Occupations Across Most of the 28 U.S. Markets

Online demand for military specific occupations trended higher across most of the 28 markets tracked by the Index, reflecting stepped-up recruitment efforts on the part of the U.S. Army, Army National Guard, and U.S. Army Reserve to secure new enlistees.

In contrast, online demand for production occupations was down across most markets, reflecting continued weak demand for manufacturing workers. Construction and extraction occupation saw uneven demand across the 28 markets, suggesting that the strong pace of demand for construction workers during the first six months of 2005 may be beginning to slow down. Lastly, community and social services occupations saw growing online job availability in most markets, reflecting strong online recruitment within the non-profit sector.

Overall results for the top 28 U.S. metro markets over the past three months are as follows:

Market JUL 05 JUN 05 MAY 05 --------------------------------------------------------------------- Atlanta 101 100 100 --------------------------------------------------------------------- Baltimore 100 101 99 --------------------------------------------------------------------- Boston 100 100 100 --------------------------------------------------------------------- Chicago 99 99 101 --------------------------------------------------------------------- Cincinnati 102 101 99 --------------------------------------------------------------------- Cleveland 99 100 100 --------------------------------------------------------------------- Dallas 99 100 100 --------------------------------------------------------------------- Denver 101 102 98 --------------------------------------------------------------------- Detroit 104 101 99 --------------------------------------------------------------------- Houston 100 100 100 --------------------------------------------------------------------- Indianapolis 98 99 101 --------------------------------------------------------------------- Kansas City 101 100 100 --------------------------------------------------------------------- Los Angeles 100 101 99 --------------------------------------------------------------------- Miami 98 102 98 --------------------------------------------------------------------- Minneapolis 102 101 99 --------------------------------------------------------------------- New York City 99 100 100 --------------------------------------------------------------------- Orlando 99 104 96 --------------------------------------------------------------------- Philadelphia 100 101 99 --------------------------------------------------------------------- Phoenix 101 100 100 --------------------------------------------------------------------- Pittsburgh 101 100 100 --------------------------------------------------------------------- Portland 100 100 100 --------------------------------------------------------------------- Sacramento 99 101 99 --------------------------------------------------------------------- San Diego 100 101 99 --------------------------------------------------------------------- San Francisco 100 101 99 --------------------------------------------------------------------- Seattle 102 101 99 --------------------------------------------------------------------- St. Louis 100 100 100 --------------------------------------------------------------------- Tampa Bay 99 100 100 --------------------------------------------------------------------- Washington D.C. 102 101 99 ---------------------------------------------------------------------

The August results of the Monster Local Employment Index will be released on September 15, 2005.

About the Monster Local Employment Index

The Monster Local Employment Index is an extension of the national Monster Employment Index, which is based on a real-time review of millions of employer job opportunities culled from more than 1,500 Web sites, including Monster(R). The local Index presents a snapshot of employer online recruitment activity in the top 28 U.S. markets with the largest working populations. The Index counts job postings as an indicator of employer demand for employees or, in other words, job availability. Job postings are online advertisements placed by an employer looking to fill one or more vacant, or recently created, job positions. All of the data and findings have been validated for accuracy through independent, monthly third party auditing conducted by ARC Research of Cranford, New Jersey. More information about the Index is available at http://LocaleIndex.monsterworldwide.com.

About Monster Worldwide

Founded in 1967, Monster Worldwide, Inc. is the parent company of Monster(R), the leading global online careers and recruitment resource. The company also owns TMP Worldwide, one of the world's largest Recruitment Advertising agency networks. Headquartered in New York with approximately 4,500 employees in 26 countries, Monster Worldwide (NASDAQ: MNST) is a member of the S&P 500 Index. More information about Monster Worldwide is available at www.monsterworldwide.com.

Monster(R) is the leading global online careers and recruitment resource. Monster was founded in 1994 and is headquartered in Maynard, Massachusetts, USA. Monster has 25 local language and content sites in 23 countries worldwide. Monster is known for connecting quality job seekers at all levels with leading employers across all industries and offers employers innovative technology and superior services that give them more control over the recruiting process. More information is available at www.monster.com or by calling 1-800-MONSTER. To learn more about Monster's industry-leading employer products and services, please visit http://recruiter.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, June 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.

CONTACT: Monster Worldwide, Inc.
General Information:
David Rosa, 212-351-7067
david.rosa@monsterworldwide.com
or
Weber Shandwick
Media Inquiries:
Lauren McDonald, 617-520-7116
lmcdonald@webershandwick.com
or
Christian Harper, 212-445-8135
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SOURCE: Monster Worldwide, Inc.