Jobless assistance applications drop in Florida — but climb nationally as pandemic rages
New applications for unemployment assistance in Florida fell last week, the U.S. Department of Labor reported Thursday.
But nationally, seasonally adjusted claims unexpectedly climbed for the second week in a row, suggesting no end in sight to the economic pain caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
For the week ending Dec. 12, new jobless claims filed in the Sunshine State declined from 29,142 to 21,780. Claims for Pandemic Unemployment Assistance, or for benefits available to workers not eligible for regular state unemployment — like gig workers — fell from 23,400 to 20,675.
Between Dec. 10 and Thursday, the state’s unemployment verification queue count declined from 45,624 to 37,365.
But over that same period, new claims in Florida for Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation, which provides for 13 extra weeks of unemployment benefits, surged by 12,715, compared with an increase of 9,019 the week before. That is evidence workers may be finding it increasingly difficult to get new jobs — though the Miami Herald reported this week that some may also be opting to stay on the sidelines to avoid virus exposure.
For the U.S., new claims rose from 853,000 to 885,000 — the highest level in three months. The four-week moving average grew to 812,500, an increase of 34,250.
In a note to clients following Thursday morning’s release, Ian Shepherdson, chief economist at research group Pantheon Macroeconomics, said the national data are even worse than they appear, because seasonal “noise” should have put the latest figure lower.
“So the increase suggests that the underlying trend is now rising rapidly, as COVID restrictions force services sector businesses to reduce staff numbers,” he said. “The seasonals point to little change in claims next week but then a big increase through the year-end into early January, with claims likely to head comfortably over the million mark, last seen in late August.”
For the past four weeks, about one-third of South Florida respondents to the U.S. Census’ weekly “household pulse” survey have said they expect a breadwinner to have a loss in employment income in the next four weeks. The survey also shows some one in seven residents consistently reporting food insecurity, and nearly that percentage reporting housing insecurity. All South Florida response rates are above national averages.
In Washington, Congress remains deadlocked on a new stimulus bill, although reports suggest the contours are in place. Senate Majority Whip John Thune (R-S.D.) said a second stimulus check of up to $700 and a weekly unemployment boost of $300 through March are both on the table, according to Politico.
This story was originally published December 17, 2020 at 9:48 AM.
