Initial jobless claims in regular state unemployment programs declined–on an adjusted basis–by 26,000 to 900,000 for the week ended January 16, the Labor Department announced today, January 21. On an unadjusted basis, initial claims for unemployment dropped by more than 151,000 to 960,668.
Continuing claims in state programs–the number of people receiving ongoing jobless benefits–decreased by 127,000 to 5.05 million in the week ended January 9. In the week ended January 2 there were 3.03 million continuing claims for Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation, which provides federal extended jobless benefits for those who have exhausted their regular state benefits
An additional 423,000 people in 47 states filed new claims for Pandemic Unemployment Assistance, the federal program created to help gig and self-employed workers otherwise not eligible for state-run employment benefits.
Nearly 16 million people were claiming benefits as of January 2, the last week with numbers on continuing claims. That number is expected to increase in the coming weeks as people who were dropped from the unemployment rolls after their benefits expired file new claims to take advantage of the extension passed by Congress in December.
Economists surveyed by Bloomberg had projected 935,000 new claims and 5.3 million continuing claims.
The number of new unemployment claims filed each week remains well above the record set during the Great Recession of 695,000 claims.
The new Biden administration inherits one of the worst job markets of any modern president, with the country’s unemployment rate at 6.7% and nearly 10 million fewer people with jobs than at the beginning of last year.
