Good News for Job Seekers: Monster Employment Index Rises Sharply in August

Read the Boston Region Index report for local details!

August 2009 Index Highlights:

• Index rises seven points, or 6 percent, the
  highest monthly rate of increase since August 2005
  


• Year-over-year decline eases to 24 percent,
  the most moderate pace of slowdown so far this year
  


• Retail, administrative and financial
  industries demonstrate solid growth
  


• Arts, design, entertainment, sports and media
  rise among occupations, whereas healthcare, community and personal care and
  services show softening demand
  


• New England leads all regions while Portland,
  OR sees the highest rise on the month amongst the metro markets
  

NEW YORK, September 3,
2009- The Monster Employment Index rose in August, seeing its highest
monthly rate of improvement in four years, as a majority of industries,
occupations, and regions registered increased online job availability following
the slow summer hiring activity. The Index's annual rate of decline continued to
moderate, indicating some signs of improvement in underlying demand for labor
nationwide.

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®.

During August, online job
availability rose in 15 of the Index's 20 industry sectors and 18 of the 23
occupational categories monitored. Index results for the past 13 months are as
follows:

"The significant jump in the Monster Employment Index
in August offers encouraging signs of improvement in the US economy with the
demand for managers and professionals as well as sales and office workers
picking up in time for the fall hiring season," said Jesse Harriott, senior vice
president and chief knowledge officer at Monster Worldwide. "The Index is now at
its highest since February while showing the most moderate yearly rate of
contraction since December 2008."

Arts, Entertainment and
Recreation, Retail Trade and Administrative/ Support Industries Register Large
Monthly Gains in August
Online labor demand in the arts,
entertainment and recreation industry registered a seven-point rise in August,
rebounding from July's historic low. Demand for staff in sales and commerce
related industries at large also edged higher with both retail trade and
wholesale trade registering increased opportunities. Management of companies and
enterprises reported a nine-point jump, reflecting a recent uptick in investor
confidence.

Meanwhile, offerings in health care and social assistance
declined for the second consecutive month. Agriculture, forestry, fishing, and
hunting registered the sharpest decline among industries in August but was the
only sector to maintain last year's vacancy levels.

Public
administration recorded only slightly lower demand than a year
ago.

Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports and Media Occupations
Register Largest Monthly Increase in Online Demand in August
Online
demand for occupations related to arts, design, entertainment, sports and media
increased, climbing to a six-month high, reflecting a positive trend in the
creative sector as a whole. The Index also showed greater demand for workers in
professional services with legal occupations exhibiting a strong recovery from
July's decline. Online job availability for architecture, engineering and IT
occupations edged higher as well while business and financial operations saw a
10-point rise. Online job demand for blue collar occupations also rose with
transportation and material moving rising to its highest level in the
year.

In contrast, opportunities for healthcare workers were broadly
reduced in August with both healthcare support and healthcare practitioners and
technical registering lower demand than a month ago.

On an annual basis,
farming, fishing and forestry remains the only occupational category to exhibit
annual growth.

Online Job Availability Increases in All Nine U.S.
Census Bureau Regions in August
Online job demand rose in all nine
U.S. Census Bureau regions in August. New England reversed a three-month
downtrend climbing 10 points due to a notable rise in demand in Massachusetts,
Connecticut and Vermont. South-Atlantic also reversed a three-month downtrend
with West Virginia registering the highest rate of increase in recruitment
activity among all states in the US.

Year-over-year, East South Central
had the most moderate rate of decline closely followed by the South Atlantic
region.

At the state level, monthly changes were minor in most states
with the Dakotas, Oregon and Alaska experiencing increases in demand.


Twenty Six of the Top 28 Major U.S. Metro Markets Register
Increases in August
During August, online recruitment activity
increased in 26 major metro markets and remained flat in two of the 28 markets
monitored by the Index. Portland experienced the strongest monthly gain due to
an increase in demand for workers in management, IT, arts/design/entertainment
and sales. Opportunities also expanded notably in Boston led by areas such as
education/training/library, community/social services and military specific.
Baltimore and Orlando were the only two markets to remain flat in August.



To obtain a full copy of the Monster Employment Index report for
August 2009, and 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 August 2009 will be released on October 1,
2009.

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 on a
monthly basis 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.