Recruiting online took a hit in May when employers posted 3,795,400 vacant positions nationwide, which is down by 579,000 job ads from the previous year. This 13.2 percent decrease made May the third month in a row that employers decreased the amount of recruiting done over the internet, according to the recently released Conference Board Consumer Confidence Survey.

In May of 2007 there were 2.9 job vacancies posted for every 100 people in the national workforce. Last month, this ratio fell to 2.5 ads per 100 working Americans. Despite this, The Conference Board economist Gad Levanon says that recruiting online did a little better this May than in April.

“May shows a slight recovery from the large April decline, but overall the number of online advertised vacancies has been on a downward trend for the past several months,” said Levanon. “The demand for labor will likely be sluggish this summer. This lack luster job outlook is clearly a contributing factor in consumer confidence shirking to its lowest point in nearly two decades.”

The report found that all nine of the Census Regions reported over-the-year declines in the amount of recruiting employers are doing online. Out of the 3,795,400 jobs employers posted online, only 2,743,700 were new announcements. The rest were repeats of positions that employers were recruiting for in April. The total number of online advertisements increased by 145,500, or 4 percent, from the previous month to May. Still recruiting online was relatively slow considering the fact that May usually shows a significant seasonal increase in employers need for new workers.

For the ninth month in a row, Alaska had the highest ads rate in the country. Whereas, Wyoming had the lowest supply/demand rate. The report found that the amount of recruiting online decreased in 43 states in May, which is one less state than the previous month’s report found.

The industry that continued to have the largest amount of recruiting online was the healthcare industry. In may there were 219,000 opportunities were posted for healthcare practitioners. The average wage offered for those in this field was $31 an hour. Management followed healthcare with 191,200 positions posted. On average, these jobs offered $46 an hour. Other high demand occupations that employers were recruiting for online include computer and mathematical positions, business and financial operations, and office and administrative support.