The May employment report released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics revealed a glimmer of sunlight in the recession's stormy clouds. The establishment survey reported job losses of only 345,000 in May, which is the lowest level of job reductions since October 2008. The lower job loss estimate confirmed the lower-than-expected unemployment claims data reported earlier this week. The household survey increased the unemployment rate to 9.4 percent, the highest since the peak of the 1981-82 recession.