NEW YORK, May 8, 2002 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- The New York Times Job Market Confidence Index rose six points in April, to 116.6 from 110.4 in March. It was the second month in a row that the Index showed an increase.

During the same period, the Current Conditions measure of the Index rose to 143.3 from 124.8, while the Expectations measure of the Index rose to 108.0 from 106.0. For these results, February 2002 served as the base month, with values equal to 100.0. The Current Conditions measure looks at the current state of the job market. The Expectations measure looks at the expected condition of the job market in six months.

This is the latest in a series of reports issued by the Job Market Research team based on ongoing original research of trends and practices in employment in the greater New York metropolitan area. The Confidence Index is an overall measure of perceptions among employers and job seekers actively seeking employment.

Other key findings for April include the following:
- Half of all employers (50%) say they had job vacancies in April, up from 42% in March. This is the second-consecutive monthly increase of reported job vacancies.
- Seventy-three percent of employers expect to hire staff in the next six months, up from 66% in March, the second increase in a row. Among these employers, 38% expect to hire replacements for employees who quit and 32% expect to create new positions.
- Fifty-nine percent of employers hired new employees in the last month, up from 49% in March. Among these employers, 45% hired replacements for those employees who quit and 25% created new positions.
- A growing percentage of employers (25%) believe they will not have enough people to handle their workload in the next six months, up from 20% in March.

Despite the signs of job market improvement, 7% of employers expect to lay off workers in the next six months, compared to only 4% in March.

Job seekers' optimism is growing, with 17% saying in April that jobs in the New York metropolitan area are "plentiful," compared to just 12% in March.

The average number of offers that job seekers received since they started looking for employment rose to 1.5 in April compared to 1.3 in March. Also, among job seekers who are currently employed, 26% believe that it would be "very easy" to find a job with their current salary and benefits, up from 21% in March.

For the April research results, 503 employers and 300 job seekers were chosen at random from the New York metropolitan area and interviewed by telephone. The survey results for each month include responses obtained over the previous two-month period.

More detailed results of this research, designed and executed by The New York Times advertising department, will be posted regularly on the Job Market page at NYTimes.com. Questions or comments can be e-mailed to jobmarketresearch@nytimes.com.

The New York Times Job Market provides employers with a convenient way to reach the best talent and the broadest audience in the New York area with a single integrated advertising buy. Employers are now able to view their job listings in both the newspaper and in a searchable database online at NYTimes.com/jobmarket. The Job Market section online also includes career-related Times articles, exhaustive research on companies, a resume database and other tools designed to make the job recruitment process easier for both employers and job seekers.

The New York Times Company (NYSE: NYT), a leading media company with 2001 revenues of $3.0 billion, publishes The New York Times, The Boston Globe and 16 other newspapers; owns eight network-affiliated television stations and two New York radio stations; produces job fairs nationwide through its subsidiary, Professional Exchange and has more than 40 Web sites, including NYTimes.com and Boston.com. In 2002 the Company was ranked No. 1 in the publishing industry in Fortune's list of America's Most Admired Companies. Among all 530 companies on the list, the Company ranked No. 1 in quality of products/services and No. 1 in social responsibility. The Company's core purpose is to enhance society by creating, collecting and distributing high-quality news, information and entertainment.

This press release can be downloaded from www.nytco.com