The decline was most pronounced in Westchester, Pace said, where the IT job market had its worst quarterly slide since Pace created its IT job index three years ago.

The Pace/SkillPROOF IT Job Index dropped more than 100 points during the third quarter, in contrast to the strong growth of over 40 points reported last quarter.

In Westchester, of the 11 job categories, only Network Systems and Data Communications Analysts exhibited growth with a slight upturn near the end of the quarter, said Pace, which has campuses in Pleasantville, White Plains and New York City.

The IT job market in Manhattan was better, Pace said, falling just 30 points.

The full report can be read at www.pace.edu/PSII.

Tomorrow’s Workplace anticipates 63 employers will participate in the free job fair, known as “Career Connections 2008.”

It is the Spring Valley employment-services agency’s first county wide career and job fair.

Employers interested in reserving a booth for no charge should visit www.tomorrowsworkplace.org for a downloadable registration form.

For jobseekers looking to attend the event, transportation is available via Transport of Rockland’s route 59 bus line. Parking is also available.

The “How to Get a Job in the U.S.A.” workshop is geared toward immigrants, foreign nationals or anyone entering the U.S. job market, the library said.

To register, call the library at 845-352-5700.

Postings on Monster.com yesterday showed “immediate openings” for both a general manager and the newly created position of assistant manager.

The mall’s current general manager, Peter Janoff, who has overseen operations since 2005, didn’t return calls seeking comment about the ads.

Palisades Center spokeswoman Lee Marie Dell’Accio confirmed that the complex was looking to hire a new general manager and noted that Janoff was still on the job.

Dell’Accio referred further questions to the mall’s owner, Syracuse-based Pyramid Management Group Inc. A call placed to the human resources manager there wasn’t returned.

Also not returned was a call placed to mall partner Tom Valenti.

Debra Perry, who has served as a director of the company since 2004, was asked by the company to take the position, which will help the board’s credit-risk committee and Chairman and Chief Executive Joseph W. Brown “to refine and implement MBIA’s risk strategy for the global credit markets” as part of its 5-year restructuring plan, MBIA said.

The Armonk-based company has been hard hit by the subprime mortgage crisis.

Perry’s resignation from the board is effective today, MBIA said.

It isn’t known how much Perry will be paid in her new position. An MBIA spokesman didn’t immediately respond to a request for additional information.

As MBIA director, Perry earned nearly $156,000 in 2006.

Prior to joining MBIA, Perry worked for 12 years at bond-rating agency Moody’s Corp., serving as chief administrative officer and chief credit officer with responsibility over several rating groups.

All of the cuts will take place in MBIA’s insurance business. Many of the affected employees will move into different jobs, including the company’s asset management business that is not affected by the workforce reorganization, according to the company.

Jay Brown, MBIA chairman and chief executive officer, said that adjusting the company’s work force is critical as MBIA looks to improve its financial position and restore faith with investors.

“As much as I love my job, making tough decisions that negatively impact our employees is, without a doubt, the hardest part,� Brown said in a written statement. “In making these decisions, we have tried to do so quickly and in a manner that is as painless and generous as possible, with the same treatment for every employee who will leave our organization.�

MBIA’s stock has fallen 82 percent during the past year as the market for subprime mortgages to riskier borrowers weakened and foreclosures soared. Investors have been concerned that the problems for MBIA and other financial companies may not be over with the country mired in the weakest housing market in 25 years. For MBIA, the pain intensified in the fourth quarter when it reported a loss of $2.3 billion, the worst quarterly loss in its history.

MBIA and other bond insurers have taken big write-downs on the mortgage debt that they had insured.

“The MBIA senior management team has moved decisively in the last three weeks to assess the talent and workforce composition required to address our immediate needs and the skills that will allow us to compete effectively in the future,� Brown added.

Even though it is eliminating positions, MBIA said that it also is recruiting 15 to 20 new workers for “strategic roles� and filling another 10 open positions.

MBIA reported 483 employees worldwide as of Dec. 31, including 365 in its insurance business and 118 in asset management. Most of the eliminated positions will be in Armonk, where MBIA has 416 employees.

Shares of MBIA fell 58 cents to $11.60 in trading on the New York Stock Exchange.