Slammed by critics for being slow to respond to mounting price pressures, the Federal Reserve has unleashed the most aggressive tightening campaign since the 1980s.

Slowing labor-force growth means companies will have to reorient their hiring for just about every profession.

Call it the automation paradox: The infusion of AI, robotics and big data into the workplace is elevating the demand for people's ingenuity.

Ford Motor Co., Barclays Plc and Booz Allen Hamilton Inc. are just some of the companies now targeting workers with previous experience who, for various reasons, have been outside the labor force.

Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen said obstacles to bringing women into the workforce will squander the potential of many citizens and cut productivity when the U.S. needs it most.

While Chair Janet Yellen has repeatedly stated that the Fed is likely to raise interest rates gradually, market volatility and the unexpected dip in job gains have delayed such plans.

The odds of a Federal Reserve interest-rate increase as early as June rose after a government report showed payroll gains in January capped the biggest three-month increase in 17 years.

Median income adjusted for inflation rose 2 percent to $223,200 for the wealthiest 10 percent of households from 2010 to 2013. The bottom 60 percent saw the biggest declines.