plus 3, US employers added most jobs in 3 years in March - Stamford Advocate

US employers added most jobs in 3 years in March - Stamford Advocate
Career SS Guzman gets first start at 2B - Huffingtonpost.com
N.C. gets $113M for job services - MSN Money
Former No. 1 picks Smith, Carr duel for QB job - ESPN.com

US employers added most jobs in 3 years in March - Stamford Advocate

Posted: 02 Apr 2010 06:04 AM PDT

WASHINGTON (AP) — The nation added jobs at the fastest pace in three years last month as factories, stores, hospitals and the census all brought workers on board — the surest sign yet that the worst employment market in a generation has finally snapped back.

The unemployment rate stayed at 9.7 percent for the third month in a row, the Labor Department said Friday. Economists actually consider that a hopeful sign because it means more people are encouraged and starting to look for work.

"This recovery is for real," said Chris Rupkey, economist at the Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi.

Overall, the economy added 162,000 jobs for the month. About a third of the gains came from the census, with much more to come: About 700,000 head-counters will be hired to tally the nation's population this spring.

Economists took heart that even aside from the population count, the private sector added 123,000 jobs for the month, the most since May 2007.

Hiring is not expected to be robust enough anytime soon to significantly bring down the unemployment rate. Economists think unemployment will probably still be above 9 percent by the November midterm elections, making Democratic and Republican incumbents in Congress vulnerable, particularly in hard-hit states such as Michigan, Nevada and Rhode Island.

President Barack Obama seized on the positive numbers in the jobs report and took partial credit for them. But with 15 million people still out of work, he also acknowledged that the economy will be recuperating for a long time to come.

"We are beginning to turn the corner," he told workers at a battery plant in Charlotte, North Carolina, that received government stimulus money. But he added: "We shouldn't underestimate the difficulties we face."

House Republican leader John Boehner of Ohio said a jobless rate near 10 percent is "no cause for celebration." The unemployment rate peaked at 10.1 percent in October, a 26-year high.

No one disputes that the job market is still bleak. Counting people who have given up looking for work and part-timers who would prefer to be working full-time, the so-called underemployment rate rose to 16.9 percent in March.

But Friday's report from the Labor Department at least provides firm evidence that the job market is on the right track, even if it will be a long journey for the millions of Americans who want work but cannot yet find any.

"The economy is moving in the right direction, albeit at a torturously slow pace," said Paul Ashworth of Capital Economics.

Economists do not expect the jobless rate to drop to something more normal — like 5.5 percent to 6 percent — until the middle of this decade.

In the meantime, economists are concerned that hiring now appears to be concentrated among large companies — a sign that small businesses, which typically lead job creation in the early stages of a recovery, are having difficulty getting financing from banks.

In March, the education industry led job creation, followed by health services and government. Those sectors, plus others like the hospitality industry, manufacturing and retail, will continue hiring as the recovery picks up, economists say.

Although construction companies added jobs last month, it was seen as a temporary snapback from February, when snowstorms along the East Coast idled many construction jobs. The real estate market is still fragile in much of the country.

Other pockets of weakness include financial services, publishing and state and local governments, which are grappling with budget crises from coast to coast.

Nationwide, average hourly earnings fell by 2 cents in March to $22.47. Stagnant wages are a big reason people are still hesitant to spend money, a drag on the overall economy.

The number of people out of work six months or longer reached 6.5 million in March, a new high. The number of people forced to take part-time work in March rose by 263,000, to 9.1 million.

The worst recession since the 1930s has wiped out 8.2 million jobs, making the competition for any openings fierce. On average, there are five or six unemployed people competing for each opening, according to government data.

___

AP Business Writers Chris Leonard in Kansas City and Anne D'Innocenzio in New York contributed to this report.

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Career SS Guzman gets first start at 2B - Huffingtonpost.com

Posted: 31 Mar 2010 03:03 PM PDT

JUPITER, Fla. — Cristian Guzman made his first start at second base since losing the shortstop job to rookie Ian Desmond and helped turn two double plays in the Washington Nationals' 9-6 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals on Wednesday.

Guzman also went 3 for 4 with two doubles and two RBIs.

Guzman has played 1,272 games, all at shortstop. Manager Jim Riggleman said Guzman will be "somewhat of a utility player, but more than that."

Cardinals starter Adam Wainwright, who led the NL with 19 wins, allowed five earned runs on 10 hits in five innings. John Lannan, Washington's opening day starter, allowed two unearned runs in five innings.

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N.C. gets $113M for job services - MSN Money

Posted: 01 Apr 2010 07:09 AM PDT

James Gallagher

The U.S. Department of Labor has allocated $113 million for employment and training services in North Carolina this year.

The funds are part of nearly $4 billion the department plans to distribute in 2010 to the 50 states and outlying U.S. territories under the Workforce Investment and Wagner-Peyser acts.

The department's network of One-Stop Career Centers will use the money to finance job-training programs.

"These funds, and the employment and training services that they support, are a cornerstone of our nationwide effort to prepare America's workers for good jobs — the kind that spur the economy and pay family-supporting wages," says U.S. Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis. "As they seek out careers in promising local industries, workers need access to high quality training and employment services."

The department operates five such centers in Mecklenburg County under the JobLink Career Center name.

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Former No. 1 picks Smith, Carr duel for QB job - ESPN.com

Posted: 29 Mar 2010 05:29 PM PDT

Associated Press

SANTA CLARA, Calif. -- No. 1 overall selections in the NFL draft three years apart, Alex Smith and David Carr are now battling to be the No. 1 quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers.

That competition began in earnest Monday when the 49ers conducted their first organized team activity practice of 2010. The team went to work without departed general manager Scot McCloughan, who left last week in what team president Jed York called a "mutual parting."

As the incumbent quarterback, Smith clearly is in the early lead, with Carr in the background getting familiar with his new surroundings but also getting ready for a shot at the job.

Whoever eventually becomes the starter will be a lot like the guy he beats out. There are striking similarities in both style and career course between the two quarterbacks, both of whom were raised in Southern California.

"He's a California guy," Smith said of his new backup. "Now we've got two of them in the room. We joke about (the situation), that's for sure. This is the second time around for David."

Carr, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2002 draft, spent the past two seasons with the New York Giants. He was the backup there to Eli Manning, the No. 1 overall selection of the 2004 draft.

Carr appeared in nine games and threw just 45 passes during the past two seasons with the Giants. But he may have a better opportunity to revive his career in San Francisco, where Smith has not exactly established himself as the franchise quarterback the 49ers expected him to be when the team selected him with the first pick of the 2005 draft.

Carr started 75 games during his first five seasons with the Houston Texans and brings to San Francisco career totals of 14,366 yards and 65 touchdowns passing. But he has not started a game since his lone season with the Carolina Panthers in 2007.

"It's a good spot for me here," Carr said. "It's a fresh start with a hungry team. I think it matches where I'm at in my career. This team is ready to go out and prove as a group that they can do it. And I'm kind of in the same boat."

The 49ers signed Carr, 30, to a two-year deal March 15. Coach Mike Singletary and other team officials have stated that Smith is the team's defined starter entering the year, unlike the past two years when there was open competition for the job between Smith and others.

Smith took every offensive snap for the 49ers in 2006. But after Smith sustained a career-threatening shoulder injury in 2007, journeyman J.T. O'Sullivan was San Francisco's opening day starter in 2008 and career backup Shaun Hill was the 49ers' opening day starter last season.

Smith, 25, took the job back from Hill in Week 7 last year and played every offensive snap the rest of the season. He was 5-5 as the starter, finishing with 2,350 yards passing and a career-high 18 touchdown passes. Smith's final 81.5 passer rating was easily the best of his career.

Hill was traded to Detroit in March for an undisclosed draft pick.

Smith, who took most of the snaps with the first-team offense Monday, looked in control and is conducting himself with much more authority than earlier in his career. He barked out signals and directed traffic while appearing comfortable in both roles.

It helps that Smith is playing a second season with the same offensive coordinator for the first time in his career. Jimmy Raye has returned this year as San Francisco's offensive coordinator, ending a recent stretch when the 49ers changed offensive coordinators every season over a seven-year period.

"I'm much more confident in what I can do right now, without a doubt," Smith said. "Not just physically speaking, but the mental part for sure. Obviously, I'm more comfortable giving my insights and stronger opinions about it, as far as running things and handling things. I'm going to come out here and compete and do everything that I can to become the best quarterback I can to help this team."

This story is from ESPN.com's automated news wire. Wire index

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