The jobless rate in the country has apparently slumped, with fewer people asking for unemployment benefits the week prior. The decreased number may have been possible due to the current economy that has hampered many companies from laying off their employees.
According to the New York Times, last week saw a drop in jobless rate as the Department Labor noted that the weekly applications for unemployment support has significantly decreased by 6,000.
The applicants for U.S. jobless aid has dropped to 271,000, while numbers of layoffs in many companies have also reached an all-time low, indicating that many businesses are holding onto their workers.
The persistent demand is seen to be one of the primary reasons why employers maintain their companies' headcounts. In light of the diminished unemployment rate, hiring managers are convinced that securing their skilled workers would be the best way to stabilize company output and sales.
Instead of laying off workers, companies agreed to raise salaries and strengthen job security so as to provide a boost in consumer spending, Bloomberg has learned.
"Companies are concerned that if they let people go, even if they're not their star employees, that it'll be difficult to replace them," senior economist at Moody's Analytics Inc. in West Chester, Pennsylvania Aaron Smith was quoted as saying by the news site. "Wage pressures should be picking up, supporting the positive outlook for consumer spending."
Though the weekly applications for unemployment benefits have been very volatile, the latest figures prove to be largely positive since the average number is deemed the lowest since Nov. 1973.
Moreover, the stock market fluctuations have not affected the employment and unemployment rates to an alarming extent, Bulletin Leader reported.
Despite the favorable decrease in weekly applications for unemployment aid, the total number of people receiving jobless benefits reached 2.27 million by Aug. 15.
