The Monster Employment Index Europe edged up one point to a level of 130 in March, notching a second consecutive month of growth following a seasonal dip in January. The Index showed increased online recruitment activity in the Netherlands, Sweden and United Kingdom, while demand fell sharply in France and dipped slightly in Germany. Year-on-year, the Index is up 13 points.



The hospitality and tourism sector showed the strongest rate of growth in online opportunities in March. The construction and extraction sector also rose, as demand in Germany grew sharply. In contrast, the Index showed fewer online offers in the public, defence and community sector last month.

Overall, most blue-collar occupations saw higher demand, while opportunities in white-collar categories dipped slightly. The technicians and associate professionals; and professionals categories both edged down, while plant and machine operators saw more online opportunities, due to stepped-up recruitment activity in Germany.

Findings for the five countries tracked by the Monster Employment Index Europe for the past 14 months are as follows:



Launched in June 2005 with data collected since December 2004, the Monster Employment Index Europe is compiled by Monster Worldwide. The Index was established to provide European labour market watchers with a valuable monthly snapshot of online recruitment activity based on the research of millions of employer postings from more than 1,400 Web sites. In addition to providing an analysis of overall European online job demand, the Index shows changes in online opportunities within industry sectors and occupational groups.