Nationwide Unemployment Claims Approach 1 Million
About 965,000 workers filed for first-time benefits the week ending Jan. 9. That’s an increase of 181,000 new claims from the prior week, when 784,000 workers filed new claims.
Photo: Pedestrians pass an office location for the New York State Department of Labor in the Queens borough of New York.
Photo Credit: Frank Franklin II / AP
Published January 15, 2021
The Center Square [By Dan McCaleb]-
New unemployment claims soared to nearly 1 million last week, the latest sign that the U.S. economy continues to struggle to overcome the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to U.S. Department of Labor data released Thursday, about 965,000 workers filed for first-time benefits the week ending Jan. 9. That’s an increase of 181,000 new claims from the prior week, when 784,000 workers filed new claims.
During the same week in 2020, before government restrictions were put in place to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus, 207,000 new claims were filed, less than a quarter of those filing for initial benefits last week.
Continued claims, which include those who have filed for benefits at least two weeks in a row, were at 5.3 million in the week ending Jan. 2. Continued claims data lag new claims by a week.
“The advance seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate was 3.7 percent for the week ending January 2, an increase of 0.2 percentage points from the previous week’s unrevised rate,” the labor department reported.
About the Author:
Dan McCaleb, The Center Square Executive Editor
Dan McCaleb is a veteran editor and has worked in journalism for more than 25 years. Most recently, McCaleb served as editorial director of Shaw Media and the top editor of the award-winning Northwest Herald in suburban Chicago.
