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Breaking Job News: Big Drop in Jobless Claims & Fiverr's Big Workforce Cuts Due to AI
In today's episode, host Pete Newsome discusses this morning's unemployment numbers released from the Department of Labor that show a significant drop in initial jobless claims to 231,000 for the week ending September 13th, from the previous week's 264,000. Despite this positive news, job seekers continue to face tough times, as highlighted by a Wall Street Journal article discussing the difficulty of job hunting.
Additionally, we look at Fiverr's announcement to cut 30% of its workforce to prioritize AI-driven operations, reflecting a broader trend in today's job environment.
Stay tuned for insights, advice, and the reality of the current job market landscape.
News Articles:
1. DOL Unemployment Claims Release: https://www.dol.gov/newsroom/releases?agency=All&state=All&topic=All&year=all&page=0
2. WSJ Job Market: https://www.wsj.com/lifestyle/careers/how-to-handle-a-job-market-thats-worse-than-it-looks-7401a337?mod=careers_news_article_pos1
3. Fiverr Job Cuts: https://www.reuters.com/technology/online-marketplace-fiverr-lay-off-30-workforce-ai-push-2025-09-15/
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In today's job market headlines. This morning, the Labor Department reported that initial jobless claims dropped to 231,000 for the week ending September 13th, which is down sharply from the prior week's number of 264,000. That's a decline of 33,000 week over week, which is the biggest drop we've seen in months. So some potential good news in a very dark time for the job market. Continuing claims stayed flat at a rate of 1.3%, with almost2 million people currently collecting unemployment benefits. My takeaway is we're going to have to wait and see what happens next week to know how we should feel about these numbers. We saw a really big spike and now this is a good decline. Keeping it in perspective, we're still above the levels we were at this time last year. It's just a moving target right now in the job market, so next week's numbers will be really telling.
Pete Newsome:Meanwhile, the Wall Street Journal published an article today titled how to Handle a Job Market that's Worse Than it Looks. The message is that, despite relatively strong headlines, many Americans feel job hunting is getting much harder, and is much harder than it should be, and that's supported by yesterday's rate cut by the Fed. To me, that's an acknowledgement of just how much weaker the labor market has been than what the numbers were showing. So there's what's reported and then there's reality and what people feel and experience firsthand. That's the reality of the job market right now, and it's not good. The article profiles a couple of job seekers with what has really become an all-too-familiar story Months without interviews, resume fatigue, just lots of frustration with the lack of success, and there's also a feeling of guilt for being unemployed. Now nobody should feel that right now it is not your fault if you're taking all the right steps, and I know so many job seekers are. The article suggests that networking is a great thing to do right now, but I will tell you that is true, but it's one of many things you should do as a job seeker. You have to cover all your bases and it is a grind, it is frustrating, it is humbling.
Pete Newsome:I won't sugarcoat what a thorough job search requires in the current market, but as an owner of a staffing agency, I can tell you that there is hope. Our clients are hiring. I talk to my peers around the country on practically a daily basis and many of us have seen an uptick in the last couple of weeks. So summer was pretty slow. It seems like a lot of people were vacationing not a lot of activity but everyone that I've spoken with in the past two weeks has reported that they are off to a really good start in September and as a staffing company, that means your clients are hiring. So the companies that you support have job openings, and that is a really positive trend. So I rely on that experience and knowledge and those firsthand conversations a lot more than what the data tells us. So don't give up hope. Things may be trending in a better direction Now. If you have questions and you need help in your job search, let me know in the comments. This is what I do. This is what I've done for a long time is live and breathe every day in the job market, and I would love to help anyone who just needs it right now. So let me know what you need help with in the comments. I'll be happy to answer as many questions as I can.
Pete Newsome:In the final headline today, fiverr announced that they're cutting 30% of their team to double down on becoming AI first. Here we go again what seems like an almost daily occurrence companies announcing that they're replacing humans with robots. So for Fiverr, that means about 250 employees are going to lose their job and the move, according to CEO Micah Kaufman, is a shift in how the company wants to work towards automation and becoming leaner, with fewer management layers, more productivity per person. Oh, of course they want more productivity per person. I mean, their employees have to be terrified right now knowing that they're at risk of getting laid off at any second by AI. Now Kaufman said that their plan is to have an AI company first that's leaner, faster, with a modern, ai-focused tech infrastructure. Okay, I mean that makes sense. I get it, but what's gone from the CEO of Duolingo getting blasted for saying that he was going to replace humans with AI agents just a couple of months ago? Now these CEOs are coming out and saying it constantly. This is not just a cost cutting, one-off. Fiverr and others are signaling that AI isn't optional anymore. This is not a future thing. It is happening now.
Pete Newsome:Acknowledge it and protect your livelihood. Don't count on anyone else to do it for you. That's my message on this very, very important topic't count on anyone else to do it for you. That's my message on this very, very important topic, and I will continue to share it as often as possible every time I see a story like this and our fun fact for the day, although that last story wasn't very fun.
Pete Newsome:Listening to music can make people more productive when doing repetitive work, but it can slow them down when doing cognitive tasks, and that is very consistent with my personal experience. There's certain things I can listen to music and do and feel like I'm productive, but, man, there's other things where I just can't focus on that, while I'm trying to concentrate on something else and I see my kids do it all the time they study listening to music. I don't get it. Maybe young people's brains are more evolved because they've grown up with having technology in their hands almost 24-7. So maybe they can split their thoughts. I can't, but there's your fact for the day and those are your headlines. Thank you for listening. Please like and subscribe, share with anyone who you think may be interested and again, if you have questions about anything I've said or specifically a job search, let me know. I'm happy to help. Talk to you soon.