Harvard University is temporarily pausing hiring as the Trump administration scrutinizes federal funds for colleges and universities, and cracks down on antisemitism at major schools.

Harvard is enacting the freeze because of “substantial financial uncertainties” caused by the Trump administration’s new policies, school president Alan Garber, provost John Manning, executive vice president Meredith Weenick and chief financial officer Ritu Kalra wrote in a message to faculty and staff.

Companies in the private sector added just 77,000 jobs in February, payroll processing firm ADP said on Wednesday.

Employers revealed more job cuts in February than they had in any month since July 2020, according to a report released Thursday, with much of the reduction concentrated in efforts led by Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).

The Trump administration’s massive federal cuts and swelling feelings of economic uncertainty helped fuel a recession-level spike in layoff plans last month, new data showed Thursday.

The U.S. economy has started to show signs it is losing momentum.

Growing uncertainty about the Trump White House’s economic plans, including layoffs of federal workers carried out by the so-called Department of Government Efficiency, has caused consumers and businesses to further question the economic outlook. If this results in a serious pullback, the U.S. economy could be headed for a recession in the next few quarters.

The U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) warned employees that if they choose to reply to Elon Musk's directive to submit a list of five accomplishments for the past week, they should assume it will be read by "malign foreign actors."

Fox News Digital confirmed that a letter sent by HHS to employees addressed an email from the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) titled, "What did you do last week?" which directed federal employees to submit five bullet points detailing their accomplishments over the past week or face termination.

The top official at the Social Security Administration stepped down after a clash with DOGE employees over access to sensitive personal records, two sources told ABC News.

Michelle King, a career official who served at the agency for more than 30 years, was serving as acting commissioner of the Social Security Administration but left the agency after she was replaced with Leland Dudek this weekend.

Sources said that DOGE employees were seeking access to an internal data system which includes sensitive, personal information of Americans.

A federal judge in Boston on Monday heard arguments over whether to extend a nationwide pause in the Trump administration's bid to offer "deferred resignations" to federal workers who voluntarily leave government service.

Job growth in the U.S. slowed much more than expected during July and the unemployment rate ticked higher, fueling fears of a broader economic slowdown, the Labor Department reported Friday.

Nonfarm payrolls grew by just 114,000 for the month, down from the downwardly revised 179,000 in June and below the Dow Jones estimate for 185,000. The unemployment rate edged higher to 4.3%, its highest since October 2021.

U.S. job growth cooled sharply in July while the unemployment rate unexpectedly rose to the highest level in nearly three years.

The Labor Department reported Friday that employers added 114,000 jobs in July, missing the 175,000 gain forecast by LSEG economists. The unemployment rate also unexpectedly inched higher to 4.3% against expectations that it would hold steady at 4.1%. 

It marked the highest level for the jobless rate since October 2021.