Weekly jobless claims fell below the 500,000 mark at the end of April in the United States, for the first time since the abrupt shutdown of the American economy in March 2020, the Labor Department announced on Thursday.
Between April 25 and May 1, 498,000 Americans registered for unemployment benefit. This represents 92,000 people less than the previous week, which finally recorded an increase in requests after revision of the data (590,000 registrations instead of the 553,000 initially announced).
However, this remains twice as high as the usual level before the pandemic.
All programs combined, a little more than 16 million people still received, in mid-April, assistance for the loss of employment or income, according to data also released Thursday.
Paradoxically, many employers say they have difficulty recruiting.
The state of Montana (northwest) has even implemented a back-to-work bonus of $ 1,200 for unemployed people who accept a job.
The fear of contracting Covid is still present, and childcare difficulties persist until schools are fully reopened. The generous and prolonged unemployment benefits also encourage taking more time to find a satisfactory job, in particular for all those, very numerous, who wish from now on to be able to telework.
US employment figures for April will be released on Friday. In total, 1 million jobs could have been created over the month, when the unemployment rate is expected to decline slightly, to 5.8% against 6%.
The private sector alone created 742,000 jobs in April, according to the ADP monthly survey published on Wednesday. This is much more than in March, but less than expected.
Leisure and hospitality businesses alone provided nearly a third of these new jobs.
The American economy has indeed started to recover from the crisis caused by Covid-19. More than 40% of adults are now fully immunized, and Americans have money to spend with government assistance.
ats, awp, afp
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