Jobless claims fall for second straight week
After three consecutive weeks of unemployment claims that appeared to rise in tandem with omicron, fewer Americans applied for unemployment benefits for the second week in a row.
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U.S. job openings rose in December amid worker shortages
About 4.3 million people quit their jobs in December, down from a record of 4.5 million in November. Still, far more Americans are leaving their jobs than before the pandemic.
U.S. jobless claims rise to 286,000, highest since October
Jobless claims rose for the third straight week—by 55,000, to 286,000, the Labor Department reported Thursday. The jump in claims marked the biggest one-week increase since mid-July.
Develop Indy deals led to 4,575 pledged jobs, $570M in investments, leaders say
Develop Indy, Indianapolis’ economic development agency, made incentive deals involving 71 business relocation or expansion projects during the first 11-plus months of the year, officials announced Tuesday.
Companies predicted to give biggest raises since 2008
Americans are in line for their biggest wage increase in more than a decade, according to a report released Wednesday, as companies struggle against a tight labor market and high inflation.
U.S. businesses advertise for near-record 11 million open jobs
The figures from the Labor Department’s Job Openings and Labor Turnover survey, or JOLTS, show that with so many companies chasing relatively few unemployed people, job-seekers have the most bargaining power they have had in at least two decades.
Citing burnout, women have been slow to return to U.S. workforce
A new report illustrates how the pandemic imposed a heavy toll on working women. It found one in three women over the past year had thought about leaving their jobs or “downshifting” their careers.
Ascend Indiana using $23.8M to revamp its online job network
A not-for-profit workforce development initiative of the Central Indiana Corporate Partnership, Ascend Indiana is revamping the Ascend Network to better connect job seekers to career pathways and expand services to help bridge gaps in workforce needs.
IBJ Podcast: Indiana’s workforce leader talks unemployment, labor markets and minimum wage
Host Mason King talks with Fred Payne, commissioner of the Indiana Department of Workforce Development, about what the state is doing to help more Hoosiers find jobs and more companies find workers.
GE Appliances announces $450 million investment in Indiana’s neighbor
GE Appliances—which at one time employed thousands of people in Indiana—announced plans Thursday to add more than 1,000 jobs at its sprawling Kentucky operations as part of a $450 million investment to boost capacity and launch new products.
Cutoff of extra jobless aid spurs little influx of job seekers
Economists point to a range of factors that are likely keeping millions of former recipients of federal jobless aid from returning to the workforce. Many Americans in public-facing jobs still fear contracting COVID-19, for example. Some families lack child care.
After three months of stasis, Indiana unemployment rate dips to 4%
An estimated 134,842 Hoosiers are currently unemployed and seeking jobs, the state reported Friday. That’s down from 137,857 in July.
U.S. unemployment claims fall to new pandemic low of 290,000
Unemployment claims are increasingly returning to normal, but many other aspects of the job market haven’t yet done so. Hiring has slowed in the past two months, even as companies and other employers have posted a near-record number of open jobs.
Americans quit their jobs at a record pace in August
The Labor Department said that quits jumped to 4.3 million in August, the highest on records dating back to December 2000, and up from 4 million in July.
Puzzle overhanging job market: When will more people return?
To an extent that has surprised economists, many people who lost or quit their jobs during the pandemic recession have yet to look for work again despite a robust economic rebound that has left many employers desperate to hire.
Indiana hopes its free online lab will be hub for professional development
Backed with millions of dollars in funding, Keep Indiana Learning is partnering with the Indiana Department of Education as part of a statewide initiative to provide a central hub for teacher professional development: The Indiana Learning Lab.
County jail manager to cease operations, lay off 143 workers at end of year
Marion County Jail II manager CoreCivic is not eligible to operate at the new Criminal Justice Center because the Indianapolis City-County Council passed an ordinance in 2018 to prohibit private jail managers at the center.
Another record for U.S. job openings: 10.9 million in July
Nearly 4 million people quit their jobs, just shy of a record set in April, and up from 3.9 million in June. That suggests many Americans are confident enough in their prospects to seek something new.
Companies loosen job requirements, but challenges remain
In a desperation for hired hands, companies have loosened hiring restrictions on everything from age to level of experience. The changing standards may have helped boost hiring this summer, even as many companies complained they couldn’t find all the workers they need.
U.S. job openings hit record 10.1 million
The gap between openings and hiring suggests that firms are scrambling to find workers. Lingering health fears, difficulty getting child care at a time and expanded federal jobless aid may have kept some unemployed Americans from seeking work.