Worker shortages are putting more money in employees' pockets but could slow the economy

The nationwide worker shortage that held down U.S. job growth last month boils down to this: America's workers are raking in lots of money, but they have fewer places to spend it.

Businesses that can't find enough workers are pushing their existing staffers harder, converting part-time employees to full-time and asking full-time workers to put in lots of overtime. That's stuffing more cash into the pockets of Americans already flush from three rounds of government stimulus checks totaling $3,200 since the COVID-19 pandemic began more than a year ago.