Pasadena, CA -- (SBWIRE) -- 04/19/2011 -- The Labor Department reported on Thursday that the total number of initial jobless claims went down to 382,000 for the week ending on April 2.

But the situation for long term unemployed Americans remained grim, with 45 percent of the 6.1 million jobless for over six months. The U6 index, which measures discouraged and part-time workers looking for full-time work declined slightly to 15.7 percent. Although the jobs scenario has improved compared to 2010, there are still millions of Americans who are underemployed or forced to work in part-time jobs.

In March, there were 8.4 million involuntary part-time workers. Another 2.4 million people were marginally in the labor force, including 921,000 people who have given up looking for work.

The hourly wage for all employees in the nonfarm private sector stayed the same at $22.87. Professional services accounted for the largest sector in jobs creation with 78,000 new jobs. Education and healthcare accounted for another 45,000 jobs. Leisure and hospitality created 37,000 jobs and retail added another 18,000 jobs. The manufacturing sector was able to create only 17,000 net jobs.

Barnes, CEO of job search engine Hound says “We have seen more and more companies listing their job openings on their websites. But a lot of people don’t see that and instead rely on the public job boards. Many small firms can’t afford their fees so both the company and the jobless lose out.” Hound, a job search engine, has been tracking jobs from all sectors and has found over 132,000 jobs directly from employer websites in the last seven days.