U.S. employers advertised more job openings in May than the previous month, a hopeful sign following three months of weak hiring, the government reported Tuesday. The Labor Department said job openings rose to 3.6 million, up from 3.4 million in April. It was the second-highest level in almost four years, just behind the 3.7 million seen in March. However, layoffs also increased, indicating that the job market still is struggling. Despite the increase in advertised jobs, the competition for positions remains fierce. There were 12.7 million unemployed people in May, or an average of 3.5 unemployed people for each open job. In a healthy job market, the ratio is around 2 to 1. Hiring has slowed sharply this spring. Employers added only 80,000 jobs in June, the third consecutive month of weak hiring. In the April-June quarter, the economy added an average of only 75,000 jobs per month. The unemployment rate remained at 8.2 percent in June, raising concerns the U.S. economy is weakening further. Wages are barely keeping pace with inflation, and without more jobs and higher pay, consumers will not have the income needed to fuel more spending and economic growth. The slow pace of hiring also suggests businesses are not confident enough in the economy to add permanent employees. Nearly one-third of the jobs added in June were temporary hires.
