Online advertised job ads were basically flat, falling by 15,700 in November to approximately 4.72 million, according to The Conference Board help wanted online data series released today.

“Hurricane Sandy pushed the national labor demand into negative territory as declines along the East Coast more than offset the gains in states in the central and western U.S.,” said June Shelp, vice president at The Conference Board.

The “hurricane effect” on the East Coast impacted job demand from Virginia to Massachusetts and contributed to a combined drop of 20,000 in New York and New Jersey.