Nationally, applications for unemployment aid dropped 14,000, to a seasonally adjusted 351,000, the Labor Department said Thursday. That matches a four-year low reached last month. The four-week average, which smooths fluctuations, was unchanged at 355,750.
In Utah, new claims for jobless benefits fell by 28, to 1,940, the lowest level since early October. The four-week average dropped by 35 to 1,860, according to the state Department of Workforce Services.
The steady decline in applications has coincided with the best three months of hiring in two years. From December through February, employers added an average of 245,000 jobs a month. The unemployment rate has declined to 8.3 percent, the lowest in three years. Salt Lake Tribune
