Although unemployment remains high and there's a perception of a talent surplus, human resources professionals might have to choose from limited quantities of high-skilled workers as the widening skills gap makes it difficult for U.S. employers to compete globally, according to a new Deloitte study.

The median rates of unscheduled employee absences averaged 0.6 percent of scheduled worker days per month through 2011, which is down from 0.8 percent in 2010 and 0.7 percent in 2009, according to an employer survey by Bloomberg BNA.

The U.S. Department of Labor is introducing new tools to help state agencies detect, prevent and recover improper unemployment insurance payments while fighting UI fraud.

More than one-quarter of lawyers at 26 percent plan to hire full-time legal staff during the second quarter; however, 4 percent of lawyers expect to cut staff, according to the quarterly Robert Half Legal Hiring Index.

According to Harris Allied, a New York City-based recruiting firm, the first quarter is often when employees look for new job opportunities, but employers can proactively take steps to retain their top talent.

Ninety-one percent of employers in Californias Silicon Valley say they plan to increase or keep employment levels at the same numbers, according to an economic survey by West Valley Staffing Group.

U.S. employers say they are more optimistic about hiring across all industries and geographies, according to the latest Manpower Employment Outlook Survey released by ManpowerGroup.

Small-business employment grew by .25 percent during Febraury after a 2.75 decrease in January, according to the CBIZ Small Business Employment Index, which measures hiring trends among companies with 300 or fewer employees.