As job growth finally starts to take off thanks to improving vaccine numbers and increasing optimism, the economy is confronting an unusual quandary: a mismatch of expectations between workers and employers that's becoming a standoff.

Why it matters: The jobs growth bonanza economists and asset managers are predicting for 2021 and beyond could be inhibited by a market where American workers — particularly those at lower income levels — demand higher wages and employers refuse to pay them.

Cities far from the coasts have emerged as havens to job seekers and businesses during the coronavirus pandemic, according to an estimate from the Wall Street Journal.

How it works: To determine the strongest job market in the U.S., The Journal rated 53 regions with more than 1 million residents on factors that included unemployment rate, wages and change in payroll and size of workforce.

U.S. initial jobless claims remained below 1 million for the third straight week, but after a notable drawdown during the week of March 20, claims increased for the second straight week.

The intrigue: March's blowout nonfarm payrolls report showing 916,000 jobs added should have signaled a positive trend for employment gains, however, the jobless claims report suggests layoffs continue. That could hamper the recovery.

Nearly a third of small- and medium-sized businesses have had to lay off workers as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, and half say they don't plan to rehire employees in the next six months, per Facebook's Global State of Small Business Report out Friday.

Why it matters: Small businesses have been pummeled in the past year, and small businesses owned by people of color faced higher closure rates, lower sales and bigger staff reductions.

New data shows both the promise and peril of the White House push to speed deployment of renewables while also accelerating the transition away from fossil fuels.

Driving the news: A report on energy industry wages across sectors shows that they're far above the national median and more likely to provide healthcare and retirement benefits than the national average.

JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon is calling on companies to play a bigger role in the world’s problems, saying today in his annual shareholders letter that the business sector should be a “responsible community citizen."

Why it matters: Corporations are increasingly facing more pressure to take a stand on politically divisive issues.

The March reading of the ISM services index reached the highest level on record last month (with data going back to 1997), far outpacing economists' forecasts. At 63.7, it jumped more than eight points from the month before.

The big picture: Readings from business owners in the U.S. services sector now have joined the manufacturing sector in ebullience about the future, as stimulus checks hit bank accounts, vaccination rates rise and job growth returns.

The pandemic has pushed teachers out of the workforce in droves, and many schools don't have a strong safety net to fill the gaps as children come back into classrooms.

Why it matters: Teaching has been one of the toughest pandemic-era jobs, with pivots to remote learning and then risk of infection with school reopenings.

We're not in the throes of a "Greater Depression," and we're not facing a tsunami of bankruptcies. In fact, the stock market is hitting new record highs, while employment is rising fast. For all of these things, thank one institution above all others: the Federal Reserve.

Why it matters: The coronavirus crisis has made abundantly clear the awesome power of central banks in general and of the Fed in particular.

"For central banks, I don’t think there is any alternative to what they’ve been doing until now, namely vastly significantly support the economy," former European Central Bank president Mario Draghi told Axios in December. "Support, in my view, will continue for quite a long time."