Last week, the overall number of Americans receiving unemployment benefits fell to its lowest level in more than 50 years. Applications for unemployment benefits inched down last week.
The Labor Department reported on Thursday that jobless claims declined by 2,000 to 184,000 last week. The four-week average of claims increased by 4,500 to 177,250.
In the week of April 9, about 1.42 million Americans were receiving traditional unemployment benefits. It is the fewest since February 21, 1970.
After a brief but terrible recession caused by the coronavirus outbreak two years ago, American workers now have unprecedented job security. Weekly unemployment aid applications, which closely track layoffs, have continuously remained below the pre-pandemic level of 225,000.
US job market and economy
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Employers added a record 6.7 million jobs last year. So far in 2022, they’ve added an average of 560,000 positions per month. The unemployment rate peaked at 14.7 percent in April 2020 at the depths of the COVID-19 recession. It has now dropped to 3.6 percent, just above the 50-year low. In addition, there are 1.7 job vacancies for every unemployed American, which is a new high.
Despite persistent supply chain problems, the economic effects of Russia’s war against Ukraine, and the greatest consumer inflation in 40 years, the US job market and overall economy have shown surprising tenacity.
Job vacancies remained near-record highs in February, scarcely altered from the previous month, which the Federal Reserve sees as a driver of inflation. According to the Labor Department, there were 11.3 million job openings last month, matching January’s tally but falling short of December’s record of 11.4 million.
The number of people quitting their jobs in the United States has stayed at an all-time high, with 4.4 million resigning in February, up from 4.3 million in January. In November, more than 4.5 million people quit, the highest number in two decades. Many people are taking advantage of a plethora of career options, frequently for better compensation. The vast majority of those who resign do so to take a new job.