Challenger, Gray  & Christmas Inc., a Chicago-based placement firm, has just released a report surveying the current job market. Contrary to public sentiment, the firm reports that there are various trends that show signs of a significant job market recovery.

Among those signs is a boost in new jobs as well as a slowing in layoffs across the country.

The report said, “Through the first half of 2009, employers announced 896,675 job cuts. In the second half of 2009, total job cuts dropped 56 percent to 391,355. The number of planned layoffs fell another 24 percent in the first half of 2010, with employers announcing workforce reductions totaling 297,677.”

The report also noted that payrolls throughout the nation have made gains since the beginning of 2010. There were “five consecutive months of net growth and more than one million new jobs added to the economy,” according to the firm’s report.