American employers reported weaker-than-expected hiring last month. But a survey of American workers showed a surge in the number taking jobs.Those conflicting pictures emerged from a single government report on Friday, further clouding the economic outlook as a new phase of the coronavirus pandemic unfolds.The ambiguous Labor Department data muddles the calculations of Federal Reserve policymakers weighing whether to shift their focus from creating jobs to reining in prices. It is a complication for a White House trying to show the success of its economic course. And it offers little guidance to businesses about what to expect in the months ahead.To be sure, recent economic readings were already a muddle. Consumer confidence readings have been at a low ebb, ev …
