Hiring | featured news

Amazon has set a torrid hiring pace in recent months, accelerating a rate of employee acquisitions that was already well ahead of most large corporations.

The number of people applying for U.S. unemployment benefits ticked down last week after dropping sharply the previous week, evidence hiring could pick up this month.

U.S. companies hired the fewest people in seven months in April, a worrisome sign for a labor market that has struggled to gain traction and adding to concerns that the economy has lost some momentum.

Facebook has weighed in on a practice by some businesses asking employees or job applicants for their passwords to the popular social-media site.

A Democratic senator from Connecticut is writing a bill that would stop the practice of employers asking job applicants for their Facebook or other social media passwords, he told The Associated Press on Thursday. U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal said that such a practice is an "unreasonable invasion of privacy for people seeking work."

The Federal Reserve said Tuesday that the U.S. economy has improved modestly as hiring and consumer spending have risen, and it's holding off on any new steps to boost the economy. Fed officials cautioned in their statement that unemployment remains high. And it noted that global economic growth has slowed — a reference to Europe's debt crisis. They left open the possibility of taking new steps next year if the economy worsens.

New claims for unemployment insurance dropped to their lowest level in seven months, government data showed on Thursday, raising hopes that hiring may be picking up. The Labor Department said seasonally adjusted initial claims dropped 5,000 to 388,000, versus the previous week's revised 393,000 figure. The 4-week moving average, widely considered a more accurate measure of labor market trends, was 396,750, a drop of 4,000 from the previous week's revised average of 400,750.

Economists see a vicious cycle: The economy won't improve until businesses hire, but many won't hire without consumer demand, which is weak because of the slack job market and concerns about the future. The roofing supply yard in Long Beach is rumbling with activity these days, thanks in part to a wet winter that has property owners eager to make repairs before fall.

The U.S. labor market could stay sluggish for a while, with small-business executives reluctant to hire amid the murky economic outlook, a Chamber of Commerce survey showed.

Hiring slowed to a near-standstill last month, raising doubts that the economy will rebound in the second half of the year after a spring slump.