The Labor Department said Thursday that the less volatile four-week average jumped 13,250 to 343,250, the second straight increase.

Higher pay and outsize stock market gains are flowing mainly to affluent Americans. Yet these households spend less of their money than do low- and middle-income consumers who make up most of the population but whose pay is barely rising.

The Labor Department said Tuesday that job openings rose 1 percent to a seasonally adjusted 3.93 million. That is the highest figure since March 2008.

Employers added 203,000 jobs last month after adding 200,000 in October.

The figure suggests that hiring remained healthy in November after picking up in the prior three months.

The Institute for Supply Management said Monday that its index of manufacturing activity rose to 57.3. That was up from 56.4 in October and was the highest since April 2011. A reading above 50 signals growth.

U.S. job openings and overall hiring both rose to five-year highs in September, signaling improvement in the job market.

The number of people applying for U.S. unemployment benefits fell 21,000 to a seasonally adjusted 323,000 last week, the lowest since late September and further evidence of an improving job market.