Initial claims for U.S. unemployment benefits rose last week, a sign that the labor market is struggling to gain traction, Bloomberg reported.

First-time claims rose by 2,000 to 414,000 in the week ended Sept. 3, according to figures released by the U.S. Department of Labor. Economists had projected a drop in claims to 405,000.

Companies are stepping up the pace of firings, raising the risk that consumer spending will slow further. Job growth stagnated last month, and the unemployment rate was unchanged at 9.1 percent.

“Especially with the double-dip recession risk rising, firms are cutting labor costs,” said Jeffrey Roach, chief economist at Horizon Investments LLC, in an interview with Bloomberg. “They are not quite ready to ramp up production and create the jobs needed for our struggling economy.”

The four-week moving average of jobless claims rose to 414,750 from 411,000.

President Barack Obama, in a nationally televised speech set for later today, plans to propose sparking job growth by injecting more than $300 billion into the economy next year, mostly through tax cuts, infrastructure spending and direct aid to state and local governments.