Monster online jobs index edges up in April

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A gauge of U.S. labor demand edged up one point in April, as growth in U.S. online recruitment activity and demand for workers eased following two previous months of sharper gains, Monster, a global online careers and recruiting firm, said on Thursday.

Monster said its Employment Index moved up to 186 points in April from 185 in March and 163 a year earlier.

The index is now up 14 percent year-over-year, showing a modest annual growth pace compared with a year ago, it said.

"The index is slightly higher in April, but its pace of growth does reflect a moderating U.S. economy so we see growth and demand at lower levels than we saw in 2006 and 2005," said Steve Pogorzelski, group president of Monster Worldwide, parent company of Monster. "At the same time, the demand we do see is relatively stable."

Overall, 16 of the 20 industries and 19 of the 23 occupational categories tracked by the Monster index registered increases of varying degrees in April.

The educational services and health-care industry categories continued their strong expansion in April, Monster said.

Online job demand in the nine U.S. regions tracked by Monster were flat to lower last month.

The Monster Employment index is a monthly analysis based on a review of more than 1,500 career sites, job boards and other Web sites. The margin of error is plus or minus 1 percent.