US unemployment drops unexpectedly to 13.3% amid outbreak
The U.S. unemployment rate fell unexpectedly in May to 13.3% — still on par with what the nation witnessed during the Great Depression — as states loosened their coronavirus lockdowns and businesses began recalling workers.
1.9 million seek jobless aid even as reopenings slow layoffs
Nearly 1.9 million people applied for U.S. unemployment benefits last week, evidence that many employers are still cutting jobs even as the gradual reopening of businesses has slowed the pace of layoffs.
Amazon says most of its pandemic hires can remain as full-time employees
Amazon will convert 125,000 of the 175,000 temporary roles hired since March to permanent jobs if employees would like to stay at Amazon long term.
41 million have lost jobs since virus hit, but layoffs slow
About 41 million people have now applied for aid since the virus outbreak intensified in March, though not all of them are still unemployed.
Nearly 39 million have sought US jobless aid since virus hit
Roughly 38.6 million people have now filed for jobless aid since the coronavirus forced millions of businesses to close their doors and shrink their workforces, the Labor Department said Thursday.
Office Depot closing stores, laying off 13,000 workers
Office Depot announced a restructuring plan that includes closing stores and laying off about 13,100 employees by 2023.
JCPenney files for bankruptcy as coronavirus pushes retailer over edge
Retailer JCPenney filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection after the coronavirus pandemic forced stores to shut, the company announced Friday evening, joining J. Crew and Neiman Marcus.
US retail sales plunged 16% in April as virus froze economy
U.S. retail sales tumbled 16.4% from March to April as business shutdowns caused by the coronavirus kept shoppers away, threatened stores across the country and weighed down a sinking economy.
Coronavirus may prompt Potbelly to close 100 stores
While some fast-food chains have seen success under pandemic conditions, the Potbelly Sandwich Shop is considering a permanent closure of up to 100 company-owned stores as sales dropped by nearly 70 percent in March.
Some say they're making more money being on unemployment than working
As restaurants and other businesses reopen in Arizona, they will be calling furloughed and laid off workers back as the state begins to recover from the coronavirus pandemic.
63-page CDC document shelved by White House offered detailed reopening guidance
Advice from the nation’s top disease control experts on how to safely reopen businesses and institutions in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic included detailed instructive guidance and some more restrictive measures than the plan released by the White House last month.
Emotional testimony heard on Maryland Unemployment site issues
There were some very emotional testimonies shared from those participating in a virtual joint Maryland committee hearing held on Tuesday to review some of the serious and continuing issues Marylanders are still having with the Maryland Department of Labor’s new unemployment web portal.
Fauci warns of 'suffering and death' if US reopens too soon
Dr. Anthony Fauci, the top U.S. infectious disease expert, is warning Congress that if the country reopens too soon during the coronavirus pandemic, it will bring “needless suffering and death.”
As Trump urges reopening, thousands getting sick from COVID-19 on the job
Recent figures show a surge of infections in food-processing plants as well as at construction sites and elsewhere.
Pelosi reportedly drafting $750B bill to aid state, local governments
close Secretary Mnuchin on lost jobs, toll coronavirus pandemic is taking on US economy House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is reportedly drafting legislation that would assist states and local governments that have seen their economy contract amid the coronavirus pandemic, but any new bill is expected to face resistance from Republicans who’ve said they have been largely left out of negotiations.
Mnuchin says economy will go from bad to worse, but things will soon get better
Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin offered a sobering take on the current state of American unemployment during the coronavirus pandemic, but remained optimistic that circumstances will take a turn for the better later in the year and the Trump administration is there to help in the meantime.
Unemployment 'could be' nearing Great Depression levels: Mnuchin
More than a decade of job gains were erased in April; the stunning job losses are more than double what the U.S. saw during the 2008 financial crisis.
Bernie Sanders, Kamala Harris and Ed Markey propose $2,000 monthly payments to Americans during pandemic
The Democratic senators introduced a bill to give $2,000 a month to many Americans during the coronavirus pandemic.
Virginia small businesses approved for $12.7B in aid loans amid pandemic
More than 86,000 federal loans totaling $12.7 billion have been approved for small businesses in Virginia for relief amid the coronavirus pandemic.
More than 20 million US jobs vanished in April, ADP report shows
The report from payroll company ADP showed the tragic depth and scale of job losses amid the coronavirus pandemic.