U.S. Unemployment Claims on the Rise Again

The U.S. government has reported another 1.4 million Americans filed for first-time unemployment benefits last week. It’s the first time initial jobless claims have gone up in nearly four months. It comes as some states roll back reopening plans and newly reopened businesses close down again amid surging coronavirus cases. On a positive note, continued claims, which count people who have applied for benefits for at least two weeks in a row, slipped to 16.2 million. That’s down by more than a million from the week before.
On top of those regular claims, nearly 1 million people across the country have applied for pandemic unemployment assistance, a program congress rolled out as part of the government’s covid response. The program provides benefits to workers who aren’t typically eligible, such as freelancers and those who are self-employed.