Workplace/Jobs

The low-fire, low-hire job market is making it hard for young people to enter the workforce.

The percentage of Americans out of work for 27 weeks or longer hit 26% in December. It's more evidence of a low-hire, low-fire economy — and that AI is starting to replace certain jobs.

Alexandra Petri at The Atlantic spent five months attempting to do federal work targeted for cuts — including forecasting the weather and collecting price data.

Employers announced 8% fewer layoffs in December than a year earlier.

The Labor Department’s shutdown-delayed report shows third quarter productivity grew at the fastest pace in two years — a 4.9% annualized gain.

Private sector employers added 41,000 jobs in December, according to payroll processor ADP.

Economists and analysts are looking to new data from late 2025 to help them understand where the economy might be headed in 2026.

Initial claims for unemployment benefits fell by 16,000, to 199,000, well below what economists were expecting. It’s the second-lowest reading in the last two years.

By this time next year, more states will have a minimum wage of at least $15 an hour than those where workers receive the federal minimum wage of $7.25 an hour.

In 2021, about 44% of workers received a holiday or annual bonus, according to payroll processor ADP. Since then, that number has been falling as bonuses become less common.