The Conference Board Employment Trends Index (ETI)(TM) Suggests the Economy Could...

The Conference Board Employment Trends Index (ETI)(TM) Suggests the Economy
Could Lose 2 Million More Jobs in 2009

NEW YORK, Jan. 12 /PRNewswire/ -- The Conference Board Employment Trends Index
(ETI)(TM) fell further in December. The index now stands at 99.6, decreasing
1.6 percent from the November revised figure of 101.2, and down almost 16
percent from a year ago.

"During 2008, total nonfarm employment declined by more than 2.5 million and
the sharp declines in the Employment Trends Index suggest that in 2009 this
number could grow by another 2 million," said Gad Levanon, Senior Economist at
The Conference Board. "The continued deterioration in the Employment Trends
Index signals that no turnaround in the labor market is to be expected in the
near future."

"The 17-month-long decline in the Employment Trends Index (ETI)(TM) is seen in
all eight of its components, most notably over the past six months in
temporary-help hires and part-time workers for economic reasons," notes
Levanon.

The Employment Trends Index (ETI)(TM) aggregates eight labor-market
indicators, each of which has proven accurate in its own area. Aggregating
individual indicators into a composite index filters out so-called "noise" to
show underlying trends more clearly.

The eight labor-market indicators aggregated into the Employment Trends Index
(ETI)(TM) include:
-- Percentage of respondents who say they find "Jobs Hard to Get"
(The Conference Board Consumer Confidence Survey)
-- Initial Claims for Unemployment Insurance (U.S. Department of Labor)
-- Percentage of Firms With Positions Not Able to Fill Right Now
(National
Federation of Independent Business)
-- Number of Employees Hired by the Temporary-Help Industry (U.S. Bureau
of
Labor Statistics)
-- Part-time Workers for Economic Reasons (BLS)
-- Job Openings (BLS)
-- Industrial Production (Federal Reserve Board)
-- Real Manufacturing and Trade Sales (U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis)

The Conference Board publishes the Employment Trends Index (ETI)(TM) monthly,
at 10 a.m. ET on the Monday that follows each Friday release of the Bureau of
Labor Statistics employment situation report. The technical notes to this
series are available on The Conference Board website:
www.conference-board.org/economics/employment.cfm.

About The Conference Board
For over 90 years, The Conference Board has created and disseminated knowledge
about management and the marketplace to help businesses strengthen their
performance and better serve society. The Conference Board operates as a
global independent membership organization working in the public interest. It
publishes information and analysis, makes economics-based forecasts and
assesses trends, and facilitates learning by creating dynamic communities of
interest that bring together senior executives from around the world. The
Conference Board is a not-for-profit organization and holds 501(c)(3)
tax-exempt status in the United States. For additional information about The
Conference Board and how it can meet your needs, visit our website at
www.conference-board.org.

SOURCE The Conference Board

Gad Levanon, +1-212-339-0317, Gad.levanon@conference-board.org