Jobless, Labor Market | featured news

New claims for unemployment benefits dropped to a fresh four-year low last week, according to a government report on Thursday that offered evidence the jobs market recovery was gaining traction.

The U.S. Postal Service would eliminate about 220,000 full-time jobs and shutter about 300 processing facilities by 2015 under a proposal to bring its finances in order, a postal official said on Friday.

Unemployment rates rose in more than half of U.S. states in June, evidence that slower hiring is affecting many parts of the country.

New claims for unemployment benefits rose more than expected last week, a government report showed on Thursday, pointing to a labor market that is struggling to regain momentum after job growth faltered in the last two months.

More people applied for unemployment benefits last week, the first increase in three weeks and evidence that the job market is still sluggish.

The number of people applying for unemployment benefits fell sharply for the second straight week, suggesting the job market is slowly recovering.

First-time claims for jobless benefits rose last week from an almost three-year low, highlighting the uneven nature of the improvement in the US labor market.

New claims for unemployment benefits fell last week to a three-month low, hinting at some improvement in the listless labor market.

A net 263,000 jobs were eliminated in September, pushing the jobless rate to a 26-year high. Stocks fall on the news. The nation's labor market took a turn for the worse in September as employers eliminated a net 263,000 jobs, far more than expected and reversing a pattern of steadily declining payroll losses in recent months, the Labor Department said today.