Financial Express: Job vacancies posted on the country's leading online sites have shot up 20 per cent over the past three months, ending a long slump caused by the impact of global economic recession, company officials said Sunday.

Leading job sites said they posted 2500 vacancies a month throughout 2008 and earlier this year, as big employers reined in new employment owing to unfavourable business climate.

But they said the number of vacancies have risen to 3000 a month since March, as a new democratic government has settled down in the country while companies see increased opportunities at home and abroad.

"The number of job vacancies at our site has shown big jump in the past three months. It will be around 20 per cent higher than the same period last year," said AKM Fahim Mashroor, chief executive officer of the country's largest job site, http://BDJobs.com.

He said employers from mobile phone companies, garment and textile manufacturers, banks and insurances and information technology firms are recruiting more through online jobsites

"One reason for the growth is that the companies are seeing a better future ahead. And another reason is they found online recruitment process easier, quick and efficient," he said.

BD Jobs lunched its online job site in 2000 becoming the first company to set up online recruitment website. So far, it posted vacancies for mainly medium and higher category jobs worth over 1.0 million.

Mr. Fahim said his site is visited by over 25,000 people a day. He sees online sites emerging as the main recruitment channels for leading companies in the near future.

"Mobile phone operators have made internet accessible to millions of young people in the country. Many of them visit online jobsites every day for better employment opportunities," he said.

Md Faisal Ahmed, chief executive officer of another leading recruitment site JobsA1, told the FE that his website is also getting "a very good response" from employers and job seekers.

"Many employers have now opted for online recruitment as they get quality executives who have good background in English and computer. It helps the employers to make decision and sort out applications very quickly," he said.

JobsA1 launched its operation in 2005 and already it posted 913,000 vacancies in its rapidly expanding website, the company said.

The site does not charge employers and job seekers for its services as it depends solely on revenues from advertisements. Bdjobs, however, takes Tk 1500 for each job advertisement from the employers.

Mr Faisal said his company has launched a campaign to popularise its website through bill-boards, television and newspaper ads.

The success of the two has also lured more companies in this online business. At least seven new recruitment websites have been launched in the last two years including http://Jobstreet.com, http://chakribd.com, http://careerbd.com, http://jobsbangla.com and http://bdchakri.com