In just a little while, we'll hear the latest on how many people were forced to sign up for unemployment benefits. But how's the job market doing if you actually ask people?
The number of people signing up for unemployment benefits rose by 13,000 over the last week — a surprise and not a good one. But more people voluntarily leaving their jobs can also be a good sign for the economy.
There was one tiny bright spot to March's unemployment report: 164,000 fewer people were looking for work. One particular demographic that has dropped out of the search — Baby Boomers who are choosing to retire prematurely.
After news that Sony is cutting 6 percent of its workforce and that the U.S. economy only added 120,000 jobs last month, the future doesn't look bright — but a bigger picture shows it's all just part of a slow recovery.
The economy's doing better, but unemployment is still at over 8 percent. Lots of jobless workers have turned to federally-funded retraining programs, but as New York Times reporter Motoko Rich reports, funding is running dry.
While the U.S. continues to see optimistic job gains, the situation in Europe is not looking so hopeful. The worst affected group by far are the young.
The head of the White House Council of Economic Advisers talks about the Labor Department's latest employment report, which showed that only 120,000 jobs were created in March.
