Barnes, CEO of job search engine Hound, says that the ratio does not reflect the true nature of the job market. “There are jobs available across the country and many businesses are unable to find enough qualified people.

Pasadena, CA -- (SBWire) -- 03/08/2011 -- The initial jobless claims have decreased and fallen to 391,000 for the week ending February 19.

This is a decline from the figure of 410,000 for the week ending February 12. The latest claims are well below the March 2009 high of 651,000 initial jobless claims, and the four-week moving average was 402,000. The four-week moving average is considered more reliable than the weekly average. This is because the weekly average is affected quickly by events such as slow filing because of holidays or winter storms as happened in December and January respectively.

The total number of Americans receiving jobless benefits under regular state programs stood at 3.79 million people. This was a decrease of 145,000 compared to the previous week. The jobless Americans to available jobs ratio is still 4.7 to 1.

Barnes, CEO of job search engine Hound, says that the ratio does not reflect the true nature of the job market. “There are jobs available across the country and many businesses are unable to find enough qualified people. It’s just that a lot of people are not looking in the right places or are burned out from applying through the usual job boards.” Hound has been able to find almost a million jobs directly from employer websites.