Hiring signal is displayed exterior of Prospect Heights Park District in Prospect Heights, In poor health., Monday, March 24, 2025. (AP Picture/Nam Y. Huh)
WASHINGTON, United States — U.S. purposes for unemployment advantages held regular final week, an indication that the labor market stays wholesome as firms proceed to retain their workers.
Jobless declare filings ticked down by 1,000 to 224,000 for the week ending March 22, the Labor Division mentioned Thursday. That’s principally consistent with the 225,000 new purposes analysts forecast.
Weekly purposes for jobless advantages are thought-about a proxy for layoffs, and have remained principally in a variety between 200,000 and 250,000 for the previous few years.
It stays unclear when job cuts ordered by the Division of Authorities Effectivity, or “DOGE,” will present up within the weekly layoffs report, although the Labor Division’s February jobs report confirmed that the federal authorities shed 10,000 jobs. That’s essentially the most since June of 2022.
Economists don’t count on the federal workforce layoffs to have a lot of an impression till the March jobs report, which comes out April 4.
These layoffs are a part of the Trump administration’s efforts to shrink the scale of the federal workforce by DOGE, spearheaded by billionaire Elon Musk.
READ: US hiring misses expectations in February as jobs market faces strain
Job cuts
Senior U.S. officers set the federal government downsizing in movement late final month by way of a memo dramatically increasing President Donald Trump’s efforts to reduce the workforce. 1000’s of probationary workers have already been fired — although two federal judges final week issued orders requiring the rehiring of 1000’s of these employees.
Regardless of displaying some indicators of weakening through the previous 12 months, the labor market stays wholesome with plentiful jobs and comparatively few layoffs.
The Labor Division reported that U.S. employers added a stable 151,000 jobs in February, and whereas the unemployment charge ticked as much as a 4.1 p.c, it stays a traditionally wholesome determine.
Some high-profile firms have introduced job cuts already this 12 months, together with Workday, Dow, CNN, Starbucks, Southwest Airways and Fb father or mother firm Meta.
The federal government’s weekly jobless claims report features a four-week common of purposes, meant to even out a few of the week-to-week swings. That fell by 4,750 to 224,000.
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The entire variety of Individuals receiving unemployment advantages for the week of March 15 declined by 25,000 to 1.86 million.
