Despite the fact that more Americans filed for unemployment benefits last week, the number of applications for unemployment aid for the year is still at a historic low. These low levels of jobless claims indicate that employers are still looking to hire more employees. Weekly claims are below the 300,000 level threshold, which indicates strong hiring levels. Currently it is estimated that only 2.3 million people are collecting aid.
See "Applications for US Jobless Aid Rise, but Levels Still Low", The New York Times, February 4, 2016