WASHINGTON (AP) - Employers posted slightly more job openings in February, suggesting that modest hiring gains will continue in coming months.
The Labor Department said Tuesday that employers advertised 3.5 million job openings in February. That was a slight increase from a revised 3.48 million in January but still below the three-year high of 3.54 million in December.
The fact that job openings remained steady in February suggests that the disappointing March jobs report issued last week could be a temporary bump. It usually takes one to three months for employers to fill openings.
Employers added 120,000 jobs in March. The unemployment rate fell from 8.3 percent to 8.2 percent in March, though that was mostly because people gave up looking for work. People who are out of work but not looking for jobs aren't counted among the unemployed.