WASHINGTON — America’s employers sharply scaled back their hiring last month as the viral pandemic accelerated across the country, adding 245,000 jobs, the fewest since April and the fifth straight monthly slowdown. At the same time, the unemployment rate fell to a still-high 6.7%, from 6.9% in October as many...
Momentum Growing for New Federal COVID Relief. Who Would Get Money?
WASHINGTON — House Speaker Nancy Pelosi gave an optimistic assessment of the prospects for a mid-sized COVID-19 relief bill and a separate $1.4 trillion governmentwide spending bill on Friday, teeing up expectations for a successful burst of legislative action to reverse months of frustration on pandemic relief. Pelosi told reporters...
Data Shows Americans Couldn’t Resist Thanksgiving Travel
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. — Americans couldn’t resist the urge to gather for Thanksgiving, driving only slightly less than a year ago and largely ignoring the pleas of public health experts, who begged them to forgo holiday travel to help contain the coronavirus pandemic, data from roadways and airports shows. The...
Among First Acts, Biden to Call for 100 Days of Mask-Wearing
WASHINGTON — Joe Biden said Thursday that he will ask Americans to commit to 100 days of wearing masks as one of his first acts as president, stopping just short of the nationwide mandate he's pushed before to stop the spread of the coronavirus. The move marks a notable shift...
Optimism Growing for COVID Relief Bill as Pressure Builds
WASHINGTON — Optimism about delivering long-sought COVID-19 relief is building on Capitol Hill after additional rank-and-file lawmakers voiced support for a bipartisan, middle-of-the-road plan taking shape in the Senate and as top congressional leaders connected on the topic for the first time in months. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate...
What’s in California’s New Regional Stay-at-Home Order?
Gov. Gavin Newsom announced a sweeping new coronavirus order Thursday that would trigger business shutdowns and limits on people's movement based on hospital intensive care unit capacity in their regions. Here's a look: A Regional Approach Newsom's order divides the state into five regions: Northern California, the San Francisco Bay...
Newsom Expected to Announce ‘Drastic Action’ Including New Stay at Home Order
Gov. Gavin Newsom is expected to announce new “drastic action” Thursday to combat the sudden surge in coronavirus cases, potentially issuing a new stay-at-home order for the state's nearly 40 million people amid fears that hospitals could be overwhelmed within weeks. Newsom scheduled a news conference three days after warning...
US Jobless Claims Remain High at 712,000 as Virus Escalates
WASHINGTON — The number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits fell as the nation celebrated Thanksgiving last week to a still-high 712,000, the latest sign that the U.S. economy and job market remain under stress from the intensified viral outbreak. Thursday's report from the Labor Department said that initial claims...
Couple Arrested for Flying to Home to Hawaii After Positive Virus Tests
HONOLULU — A couple was arrested at a Hawaii airport for traveling on a flight from California despite knowing they were infected with COVID-19, authorities said. Wesley Moribe, 41, and Courtney Peterson, 46, boarded a United Airlines flight to Lihue with a 4-year-old child after San Francisco International Airport officials...
Supreme Court Orders Review of California Virus Rules for Churches
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Thursday ordered a lower federal court to reexamine California restrictions on indoor religious services in areas hard hit by the coronavirus in light of the justices' recent ruling in favor of churches and synagogues in New York. The high court's unsigned order, with no noted...