Hiring picked up last month as states lifted restrictions and stepped up vaccination efforts, with the government reporting on Friday that the American economy added 379,000 jobs last month.The pace of hiring in February was an unexpectedly large improvement over the gains made in January. It was also the strongest showing since October.But there are still about 9.5 million fewer jobs today than a year ago. Congress is considering a $1.9 trillion package of pandemic relief intended to carry struggling households and businesses through the coming months.“What we’re seeing is broad, slow gains,” said Julia Pollak, an economist at …
