Nation's Unemployment Rate Rises to 4.5 Percent In April

The nation's unemployment rate rose to 4.5 percent for the month of April, up 0.2 percent from March 2001, marking the highest unemployment rate in the country in 2 1/2 years, according to a story reported by The Associated Press. April's payrolls decline was the steepest since 259,000 jobs lost in February 1991, according to a story from Reuters.