GOOD NEWS ON HIRING
Martin Wolk, MSNBC.com's econ correspondent, reports some interesting job news from the grassroots:
According to a monthly survey by the National Federation of Independent Business, member firms expanded their payrolls in each of the final three months of last year on average. That was the first time in three years the group's payroll figure grew for three straight months.
And an index of small business hiring plans rose to its highest level in 39 months, said William Dunkelberg, chief economist for the NFIB, which represents 600,000 businesses, the vast majority of which have fewer than 40 employees.
"We had a huge surge in the percent of firms planning to increase hiring," Dunkelberg said. "I think we've beaten everything we can out of the existing labor force."
The whole piece is worth reading.