emergency unemployment benefits

In another setback on employment, initial jobless claims jumped a larger than anticipated 20,000 to 457,000, the Labor Department announced Thursday. Economists had predicted initial jobless claims would total 443,000.

New claims fell by 23,000 to 452,000 last week, but that's offset somewhat by the prior week's total being revised upward by 13,000. The numbers were a little better than expected, but still not enough to indicate a recovery gaining momentum.

Just call this week%u2019s labor report a wash: Initial jobless claims unexpectedly jumped 13,000 to 462,000, but continuing claims plunged another 112,000, and the trend in state-level claims continues to provide evidence that the period of layoffs is subsiding.

Initial jobless claims unexpectedly surged by 19,000 to 479,000, the Labor Department said Thursday. Although the statistic was likely skewed higher by normal summer factory shutdowns, the increase portrays a labor market still under strain.

Jobless workers who saw the clock ticking on their unemployment benefits likely breathed a sigh of relief earlier this month after Congress overwhelmingly agreed to extend unemployment insurance payments for as many as 20 weeks. But a nonprofit labor watchdog warns that millions are still at risk...