Why April's hiring slowdown may show caution on US economy

WASHINGTON (AP) — American employers signaled their caution about a sluggish economy by slowing their pace of hiring in April after months of robust job growth.

[...] companies raised pay, and their employees worked more hours — a combination that lifted income and, if sustained, could quicken the U.S. expansion.

Anecdotal evidence suggests that some employers have become concerned that sluggish growth could weaken customer demand and limit the need for more employees.

"The figures are a yellow light, not a red flag," said Andrew Chamberlain, chief economist at Glassdoor, an employment website.

The slowdown in economies in the United States and overseas has led to volatility in financial markets and complicated the Federal Reserve's plans to gradually raise interest rates.

Employers have hired 2.3 million college graduates in the past 12 months while letting go of 425,000 workers with a high school diploma or less.

Iric Wexler, an executive at The Cleaning Authority in Columbia, Maryland, said lower unemployment has forced his company to raise pay to attract and keep workers.

The overall unemployment rate in the 19 European nations that share the euro currency, for example, is 10.3 percent.