US job openings soar to highest level on record

“Help Wanted” signs sit in storefronts across the country as job openings rose nearly 8 percent to a record-breaking 8.1 million in March, according to a Labor Department report released Tuesday. Yet employers lament a severe shortage of workers as overall hiring rose only four percent. A separate survey of small businesses by the National Federation of Independent Business found that 44 percent had jobs they couldn't fill.

What are states doing about the hiring shortage? South Carolina, North Dakota, Montana, Mississippi, and Arkansas announced plans to end the enhanced unemployment benefits. South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster said people aren’t going back to work because “they’re getting as much money…by staying home.” The $300 per week federal boost to unemployment aid started at the height of COVID-19 shutdowns.

Dig deeper: Listen to Sarah Schweinsberg's segment on The World and Everything in It about business owners struggling to fill positions.