NEW YORK — Amazon is on a hiring spree. In the latest sign of how it's prospering while others are faltering during the pandemic, Amazon said Wednesday it is seeking to bring aboard 33,000 people for corporate and tech roles in the next few months. It's the largest number of...
US Unemployment Rate Falls To 8.4% Even as Hiring Slows
WASHINGTON — U.S. unemployment dropped sharply in August from 10.2% to a still-high 8.4%, with about half the 22 million jobs lost to the coronavirus outbreak recovered so far, the government said Friday in one of the last major economic reports before Election Day. Employers added 1.4 million jobs last...
LA To Furlough 15,000 Workers Because of Virus Losses
LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles City Council declared a fiscal emergency on Wednesday, paving the way to furlough about 15,000 employees as the city struggles with an economic body blow from the coronavirus pandemic. Another 1,280 employees would receive $80,000 in cash incentives as part of an early retirement...
US Consumer Spending Rose a Moderate 1.9% in July
WASHINGTON — U.S. consumers increased their spending by 1.9% last month, a dose of support for an economy struggling to emerge from the grip of a pandemic that has held back a recovery and kept roughly 27 million people jobless. The July gain marked the third straight monthly increase in...
Trump Lashes Biden, Defies Pandemic on White House Stage
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump blasted Joe Biden as a hapless career politician who will endanger Americans’ safety as he accepted his party’s renomination on the South Lawn of the White House. While the coronavirus kills 1,000 Americans each day, Trump defied his own administration’s pandemic guidelines to speak for more than an hour...
Walters: Politics, Snafus Stall Jobless Benefits
The good news for millions of out-of-work California workers is that the federal government is offering them an additional $300 per week in unemployment insurance benefits. The not-so-good news is that the bonus is just half of the $600 in extra jobless benefits that expired nearly a month ago, it’s uncertain when...
Poll: Many in US Shoring Up Finances Amid Downturn
WASHINGTON — It's the paradox of a pandemic that has crushed the U.S. economy: 12.9 million lost jobs and a dangerous rash of businesses closing, yet the personal finances of many Americans have remained strong — and in some ways have even improved. A new poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center...
Rise in Jobless Claims Reflects Still-Struggling US Economy
WASHINGTON — The coronavirus recession struck swiftly and violently. Now, with the U.S. economy still in the grip of the outbreak five months later, the recovery looks fitful and uneven — and painfully slow. The latest evidence came Thursday, when the government reported that the number of workers applying for...
New US Jobless Claims Fall Below 1 Million but Remain High
WASHINGTON — The number of laid-off workers applying for unemployment aid fell below 1 million last week for the first time since the viral pandemic intensified five months ago, yet still remains at a high level. The latest figures show that the pandemic keeps forcing layoffs just as the expiration...
US Employers Post More Jobs in June, Pull Back on Hiring
WASHINGTON — U.S. employers advertised more jobs in June compared with the previous month, but overall hiring fell, painting a mixed picture of the job market. The number of jobs posted on the last day in June jumped 9.6% to 5.9 million, the Labor Department said Monday, a solid gain but still...