Another 140K Mass. workers file for unemployment
Photo | Grant Welker
Major Taylor Boulevard in downtown Worcester just after rush hour in late March shows just how many people are staying home during the pandemic.
Nearly 140,000 more Massachusetts workers filed initial unemployment claims last week, as claims nationally remained startlingly high despite the federal act meant to keep workers on the job.
The Massachusetts total was a drop of nearly 42,000 from the prior week but nonetheless multitudes higher than a normal week, according to the U.S. Department of Labor, which released its weekly report Thursday. Less than 3,700 such claims were filed in the same week a year ago and just over 7,400 this year in the week ending March 14, before government-mandated business closures took effect to curb the spread of coronavirus.
In four weeks' time, Massachusetts unemployment claims have gone from 7,449 to 148,452 to 181,062 to 139,582.
Nationally, claims in the week ending April 4 was 6.6 million in seasonally adjusted numbers, the second week in a row that claims hit that figure. A year ago, the national total was 196,000.
Statewide figures are not seasonally adjusted. The 140,000 Massachusetts claims represent about 3.8% of the state's non-farm employment on a seasonally adjusted basis, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The $2-trillion federal CARES Act, which includes $349-billion in forgivable loans for small businesses to maintain their payrolls, is aimed largely at keeping workers employed during the virus-related shutdown. Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker has required nonessential businesses to close until May 4.
WBJ Web Partners
Most Recent
Most Recent
0 Comments