Jobless rate hits 9.4 percent in May; layoffs slow
Jobless rate jumps to 9.4 percent in May, even as layoffs slow to 345,000
Jeannine Aversa, AP Economics Writer
On Friday June 5, 2009, 3:41 pm EDT

WASHINGTON (AP) -- With companies in no mood to hire, the unemployment rate jumped to 9.4 percent in May, the highest in more than 25 years. But the pace of layoffs eased, with employers cutting 345,000 jobs, the fewest since September.

The much smaller-than-expected reduction in payroll jobs, reported by the Labor Department on Friday, adds to evidence that the recession is loosening its hold on the country. It marked the fourth straight month that the pace of layoffs slowed.