Job openings in the U.S. eased in March from an almost five-year high, indicating employers are waiting to see how the economy performs as federal budget cuts take effect. more

PROVIDENCE – The R.I. Department of Health has awarded the state’s Safe Place for Teens to Work Award to the Pawtucket Red Sox. more

Unemployment rates fell year over year in March in 306 of the United States’ 372 metropolitan areas, including the Providence-Fall River-Warwick metro, according to the latest non-seasonally adjusted data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. more

To the Editor: The Governor’s Workforce Board (GWB) deeply appreciates the vote of support for job training expressed in the PBN’s editorial entitled “Broad job training efforts a good sign” (4/15/13). The editorial specifically commends the GWB for two grants recently awarded to Amos House in Providence and Connecting Children and Families in Woonsocket to partner with employers in the food-service industry to train 120 homeless, unemployed and underemployed Rhode Islanders. These awards were two of 10 Innovative Partnership grants – totaling nearly $2 million – that were announced in March by Gov. Lincoln D. Chafee to support innovative business-education partnerships that will prepare unemployed Rhode Islanders with the skills that businesses need to fill current and future vacancies in high-growth occupations and industries. more

Women-owned businesses in Rhode Island are not growing at the rate as those in the rest of the country. Even more alarming, while the number of businesses is growing at that slower pace, the number of people employed by women-owned companies has actually shrunk since 1997, according to a survey by American Express. more

Bel Air Finishing Supply in North Kingstown first tapped state professional-development grants five years ago when the company was making a push for exports and needed to train workers in overseas marketing. more

Fewer Americans than forecast filed first-time claims for unemployment insurance payments last week, pointing to an improving labor market. more

The U.S. Department of Labor is officially ending its suspension on new enrollments in the nation’s federal Job Corps program, but Sen. Jack Reed said that he remains “deeply concerned” that sequestration and financial mismanagement at the agency could mean fewer available slots for young people. more

Three-hundred and ninety-nine nurses and union members picketed outside the Dudley Street entrance of Women & Infants Hospital on April 11, calling on the Providence hospital to lift its hiring freeze and fill vacant positions with permanent, local workers instead of hiring temporary, subcontracted “traveler” nurses. more

After serving 17 years in the military, Matthew Paquette left his work as an electrician’s mate in the Navy, where he was assigned to the USS Shasta Battle Group Echo, stationed off the coast of Kuwait. more