HR & Recruiting — Employers Adjust Hiring, Limit Wage Growth Amid AI-Driven Layoffs

HR & Recruiting · 2026-05-08

TODAY'S SIGNAL — The labor market is entering a phase of deliberate recalibration, not contraction. Three data points converge: AI now accounts for 26% of all U.S. layoffs for a second consecutive month, employers are hiring with greater precision despite headline job growth, and only 4% of companies are issuing across-the-board pay raises. Together these signals describe a market where employers…