Evan Sohn, Recruiter.com chairman and CEO, discusses recruiter sentiment, which hit a new high, even though effects of the pandemic are still hitting some areas of the jobs market.

Labour migration is an essential – and potentially beneficial – part of all economies, regions and countries in the 21st century. One of the main reasons for migration is to enjoy better employment and earnings prospects.The usual flow of people is from developing to developed countries at the international level, and domestically from rural to urban areas or from poorer areas to richer ones.In South Africa two provinces – Gauteng and Western Cape – stand out among the full complement of nine – as the most attractive destinations for labour migrants. They contribute most to the economic success of the country, accounting for 49% of the gross domestic product in 2019.

South African president Cyril Ramaphosa has announced a three month extension of a special R350 (US$24) a month COVID-19 grant for unemployed adults who do not receive any social grant or unemployment insurance.This comes as the COVID-19 pandemic and lockdown continue to devastate the economy, entrenching extraordinarily high unemployment and poverty. While the extension, announced in Ramaphosa’s State of the Nation Address, has been welcomed by trade unions and civil society, it falls short. The country needs a permanent form of income support, not temporary relief, something the president himself clearly appreciates.

As JobKeeper enters its final weeks, the government has released the latest Tax Office breakdown of the numbers coming off the program, amid concerns its end in late March will see a rise in unemployment.With attention currently on Victoria, in a five day lockdown due to a COVID outbreak that started with a hotel quarantine breach, the JobKeeper numbers underline the impact of that state’s long lockdown last year.

Until the end of last month one million workers were paid by JobKeeper.This month there are none. Treasury thinks up to 150,000 will lose their jobs. Credible estimates put the number higher, at as much as one quarter of a million.In its place, the government introduced a A$4 billion JobMaker Hiring Credit. It will give employers who can demonstrate that a new employee will increase overall headcount (and payroll) $200 per week if the new hire is aged 16-29, or $100 if the new hire is aged 30-35.

Emergency measures to help struggling businesses pay less in unemployment insurance taxes while simultaneously granting more funding to the unemployed were voted out of the Maryland Legislature last week and await signature from Gov. Larry Hogan, R.Raising from $50 to $200 the weekly amount of uncounted pay that unemployment insurance claimants can receive is among the measures, which come as the Maryland Department Labor continues to receive thousands of claims each week.The department reported (https://www.dllr.state.md.us/employment/uicounty.shtml) receiving more than 12,000 new and reclassified claims last week, the lowest mark of the month.While this is a notable improvement from the 50,000 claims recorded in the last week of January, the state’s numbers have see-sawed for much of the year.

The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in massive shifts to seemingly every aspect of daily life. At the heart of these changes have been requirements to socially distance from others and stay at home.A number of businesses closed their doors or drastically cut back on hours and continue to do so. The result has been a historic economic recession in Canada. The drop in economic productivity has been unprecedented and millions of Canadians became unemployed after the first onset of lockdown measures.

First-time claims for unemployment insurance rose more than expected last week despite other signs of healing in the jobs market, the Labor Department reported Thursday. CNBC's Rick Santelli and Steve Liesman break down the numbers.

Labour markets around the world are undergoing significant changes – particularly in non-tech sectors. South Africa hasn’t been spared from this wave of change. The country has high unemployment rates by global standards, both at national level and among the youth. According to some theories, higher education leads to better labour market outcomes and improves future income through better career paths. But these theories have been criticised in countries with high rates of unemployment, where even graduates often struggle to find employment. It seems higher education is no longer a guarantee of a job.

When recent or soon-to-be college graduates begin to seek employment, many inevitably turn to job-search and networking platforms on the internet.The platforms include some that are college-based – such as Handshake, SymplicityGradLeaders and 12twenty – as well as networking platforms like LinkedIn and PeopleGrove. With COVID-19 having moved job searches more and more into the virtual realm, these platforms are playing an increasingly crucial role in the quest for employment.

First-time claims for unemployment insurance rose more than expected last week despite other signs of healing in the jobs market, the Labor Department reported Thursday.First-time claims for the week ended April 3 totaled 744,000, well above the expectation for 694,000 from economists surveyed by Dow Jones. The total represented an increase of 16,000 from the previous week's upwardly revised 728,000.The news comes a week after a sign of more aggressive healing in the labor market, as nonfarm payrolls in March increased by 916,000 while the unemployment rate fell to 6%.That was the biggest job gain since August 2020, though unemployment remains well above the pre-pandemic low of 3.5%.Continuing claims provided some good news on the labor front, with the total dropping 16,000 to 3.73 million. That's the lowest level for continuing claims since March 21, 2020, just after the Covid-19 pandemic hit and companies instituted wholesale layoffs in conjunction with the economic shutdown.

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Pennsylvania’s unemployment rate fell slightly in March, as payrolls expanded and every economic sector except for construction recorded growth, according to state figures released Friday.Pennsylvania’s unemployment rate was 7.3%, down a tenth of a percentage point from February’s adjusted rate, the state Department of Labor and Industry said.That was more than a whole point above the national rate of 6% in March.In a survey of households, the labor force remained virtually the same in March, at almost 6.34 million. The number of employed rose 8,000, while the number of unemployed fell by 7,000. The state hit a record high labor force of almost 6.6 million just before the pandemic.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits rose last week to 744,000, signaling that many employers are still cutting jobs even as more people are vaccinated against COVID-19, consumers gain confidence and the government distributes aid throughout the economy.The Labor Department said Thursday that applications increased by 16,000 from 728,000 a week earlier. Jobless claims have declined sharply since the virus slammed into the economy in March of last year. But they remain high by historical standards: Before the pandemic erupted, weekly applications typically remained below 220,000 a week.For the week ending March 27, 3.7 million people were receiving traditional state unemployment benefits, the government said. If you include supplemental federal programs that were established last year to help the unemployed endure the health crisis, a total of 18.2 million are receiving some form of jobless aid the week of March 20.

CNBC's "Power Lunch" team discusses the jobs debate and whether there's a labor shortage looming with Bill Rodgers of Rutgers University and Ryan Bourne of the Cato Institute.

CNBC's Jon Fortt discusses whether the extension on the eviction moratorium was a good move with Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody's Analytics.

Christopher Smart from Barings Investment Institute talks about the ripple effects of U.S. President Joe Biden's proposed infrastructure plan on businesses, markets, and inflation.

A Senate bill introduced Wednesday would broadly reform the U.S. unemployment system, seeking to plug gaps in the safety net for jobless Americans in response to the Covid pandemic and put states on a more equal footing.The legislation would raise the amount and duration of unemployment benefits, and expand the pool of workers who qualify for aid.It's sponsored by Sens. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., chair of the Finance Committee, and Michael Bennet, D-Colo.More from Personal Finance: Here's how Americans are using their $1,400 stimulus checks College internships are back and pay even more than before New $3,000 child tax credit to start payments in July, IRS saysThe bill, the Unemployment Insurance Modernization Act, would also make the self-employed, gig workers, new graduates and others a permanent fixture of the unemployment safety net.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits rose by 61,000 last week to 719,000, signaling that many employers are still cutting jobs even as more businesses reopen, vaccines are increasingly administered and federal aid spreads through the economy. The Labor Department said Thursday that the number of claims increased from 684,000 the week before. Though the pace of applications has dropped sharply since early this year, they remain high by historical standards: Before the pandemic flattened the economy a year ago, jobless claims typically ran below 220,000 a week. Still, the four-week average of claims, which smooths out week-to-week gyrations, fell by 10,500 to 719,000 — the fewest since mid-March 2020, just before the pandemic began to cause widespread layoffs.

Job growth boomed in March at the fastest pace since last summer as stronger economic growth and an aggressive vaccination effort pushed companies to step up hiring, the Labor Department reported Friday.Nonfarm payrolls increased by 916,000 for the month while the unemployment rate fell to 6%.Economists surveyed by Dow Jones had been looking for an increase of 675,000 and an unemployment rate of 6%.Leisure and hospitality, a sector critical to restoring the jobs market to its former strength, showed the strongest gains for the month with 280,000 new jobs. Bars and restaurants added 176,000 while arts, entertainment and recreation contributed 64,000 to the total. Even with the continued gains, the sector remains 3.1 million below its pre-pandemic total in February 2020.

Zoom In IconArrows pointing outwardsU.S. employers hired far more workers than expected in March 2021 as the accelerating pace of Covid-19 vaccinations continued to fuel hiring in the leisure and hospitality and at state and local governments.The construction industry also posted a strong March as the housing market stayed healthy and building activity resumed following the winter months.The Labor Department reported Friday that total nonfarm payroll employment rose by 916,000 last month, the best monthly print since August. The unemployment rate continued its steady decline to 6%.The increase in total payroll employment was better than the net gain of 675,000 that economists surveyed by Dow Jones had forecast. Though regular trading in the U.S. stock market will be closed on Friday due to the Good Friday holiday, Dow futures were up more than 150 points just before 9 a.m. ET.

In this articleFirst-time claims for jobless benefits were higher than expected last week, with 719,000 more workers heading to the unemployment line, the Labor Department reported Thursday.The total compared with the 675,000 estimate from Dow Jones and was above last week's downwardly revised 658,000.Zoom In IconArrows pointing outwardsWhile the number of weekly claims remains inordinately high by historical measures, the trend is falling now that the U.S. economy continues to reopen and nearly 3 million Americans are receiving vaccinations each day for Covid-19.Continuing claims, which run a week behind the headline number, fell by 46,000 to just below 3.8 million."Taking the two weeks together it's clear that the trend in claims is falling," wrote Ian Shepherdson, chief economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics. "We expect a sustained sharp decline in the second quarter as the economy reopens, making it easier for businesses under financial stress to hold onto employees."

Reserve Bank governor Philip Lowe’s message to the nation today through the National Press Club is that he means it.He isn’t intending to push up interest rates – he most probably isn’t intending to even think about pushing up interest rates – until 2024, at the earliest. That’s a full three years from now, at a time when, maybe, inflation will be strong enough to be “sustainably within” the Reserve Bank’s target band.

Although Australia is now largely COVID-free, the repercussions of the pandemic are ongoing.As the pandemic enters its second year, many people will be continuing to suffer with poor mental health, or facing new mental health challenges.The effects of recurrent lockdowns, fears about the effectiveness of the vaccines, restricted movement within and beyond Australia, and the bleak economic outlook are taking their toll on psychological well-being.

Editor’s note: The Biden administration has made it clear it wants to inject more money into the U.S. economy and provide more aid for priorities like vaccines, reopening schools and state governments. We asked four economists to share what’s on the top of their wish lists for Biden and Congress, and why.Steven Pressman, Colorado State UniversitySince March, 20,000 U.S. businesses have failed every month, on average. Small companies, which employ nearly half of all workers, have been hit hardest. The U.S. economy will struggle to recover without significant support for small businesses and their workers.