Local companies posted 27,100 jobs online last month, about 100 more than July. The Conference Board's closely watched report is considered one of the best ways to track job growth, as companies list openings on numerous sites, from HotJobs to Monster.
For the first eight months of the year, the region's employers have posted 14 percent more jobs compared to the same period in 2009, which is lower than the statewide and national rates. Of course, just because a company posts a job, it doesn't necessarily mean that it leads to a hire. In July, the four-county region had almost 135,000 people looking for work.