Employee Participation

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 number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits tumbled 23,000 last week to 298,000, nearly a six-year low that shows companies are laying off fewer workers.

At a time when there's growing attention on economic disparities, labor unions, worker advocacy groups and Democrats hope to build public support to raise the federal minimum wage.

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

This surge in corporate beneficence isn't an indication that employers are becoming kinder and gentler: It's about the bottom line.