U.S. jobs outlook brightens

The tally of nationwide job cuts in March dropped to its lowest level since May, a survey released today reports.

There were 37,880 layoffs in March, according to Chicago-based outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas. That's 27% lower than the 51,728 job cuts announced in February, and 9% lower than March 2011, when there were 41,528 layoffs. The last time the job loss report was this low was last May, the survey stated, when there were 37,135 cuts.

The sector hit hardest by layoffs in March was telecommunications, which reported 4,089 layoffs, the report shows. Almost half that total, 1,900, stem from T-Mobile, which is consolidating call centers. Verizon Wireless also announced it's closing a call center, which had 750 jobs. Wells Fargo and online retail firm QVC also announced layoffs from call centers, which total 685 jobs.

One sector that's relatively escaped large-scale layoffs so far in 2012, the report notes, is government. In total, there have been 5,750 reported job losses in government this year, which is down 86% from the first three months of 2011, when there were 41,929 layoffs.

Still, Challenger, Gray & Christmas CEO John Challenger says government employees shouldn't get too comfortable. “This may simply be the eye of the storm for government workers; a lull in activity in an election year and a time when many state budgets are still being negotiated,” Challenger said in the report. “The potential for a surge in government cuts is significant.”

Challenger cites the U.S. Post Office and the U.S. Department of the Interior as two places where cuts loom on a federal level.