Online hiring is on the rise with strong demand for mobile, social media, open source ,and cloud computing skills in particular according to data from online talent marketplace Elance.Data released today by online talent marketplace Elance points to positive growth in online labor. Earnings of the professionals with technical, marketing, and business skills that are available for hire through Elance are up almost 40% year-over-year. In the first quarter of 2010 the Elance talent pool earned more than $20 million. With the recent Labor Department numbers for March clinging doggedly to 9.7% unemployment despite 162,000 new jobs and the InformationWeek IT salary survey indicating flat growth in IT salaries, the Elance Online Talent Report represents a welcome bright spot and yet another proof point for online employment.

Commenting on the report findings, Elance vice president of marketing, Ellen Pack, said, "Businesses are increasingly incorporating more flexible work arrangements, self-employed workers and a shift to using online workplaces into their strategy. Companies are turning to online talent for mobile development, open source, social media and cloud computing, making these the fastest growing skills in demand on Elance. In fact, businesses are finding it easier and more cost-effective to hire certain types of talent online, rather than onsite."

Breaking down the data by skill category reveals four areas that have saw significant gains in demand last quarter.

Looking at the geographic breakdown, the Elance report indicates that domestic US Talent ranks first in the creative category and second in the marketing and operations categories. India holds the top position in the IT, marketing, and operations categories.

The top US Cities by earning were:

Amarillo, the surprising name among the leaders zoomed into the top 5 from 20th position in Q4 2009.

The top US States by earnings were:

The complete findings of the Elance Online Talent Report are available here.

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