By Alicia Wallace, CNN

(CNN) — Layoffs may not be mounting, but it’s getting harder to find a job in a labor market where hiring is “anemic” as tariff-driven economic uncertainty has put a chill on some employers.

New data released Thursday showed that initial claims for unemployment benefits — considered a proxy for layoffs — fell last week. However, the number of recurring claims made by people who already have filed for unemployment rose to their highest level since November 2021.

There were an estimated 227,000 first-time applications for unemployment insurance made during the week that ended on July 5. That’s down 5,000 claims from the prior week.

Economists were expecting claims to move higher to 238,000, according to FactSet.

The US labor market has cooled significantly during the past year, and the pullback in job growth has largely been attributed to employers reining in hiring rather than conducting mass layoffs.

That trend, however, has meant that it’s taken longer for unemployed people to find work. Continuing claims, which are filed by people who have received jobless benefits for at least one week, once again but up against three-and-a-half-year highs.

The number of continuing claims rose by 10,000 to 1.965 million, marking the highest total since November 13, 2021.

“It’s difficult to find a new job right now. Young people are struggling to get their first jobs and anyone who has been laid off is having a hard time landing their next role,” Heather Long, chief economist at Navy Federal Credit Union, wrote Thursday. “The labor market is frozen outside of healthcare, education and law enforcement jobs. Hiring is anemic in other sectors as companies remain cautious in this environment.”

In June, employers added a stronger than expected 147,000 jobs; however, about 94% of those gains were in healthcare and state and local government, according to the latest jobs report released last week.

That report also showed that job seekers are staying unemployed for roughly six months, and the share of unemployed workers who have been out of a job for 27 weeks or longer rose to 23.3%, edging closer to a three-year high, Bureau of Labor Statistics data shows.

“The sooner the tariff uncertainty abates, the better for job seekers,” Long said.

Jobless claims data can be highly volatile (especially during weeks with holidays) and is frequently revised, but can provide a timelier snapshot of shifts occurring in the labor market.

The weekly reports have risen in importance as a potential indicator for how the sweeping actions taken by President Donald Trump — including steep tariffs, cutbacks to the federal workforce and to spending, and reductions in immigration — are impacting the economy.

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