Another 2.1 Million People Filed for Unemployment Last Week
Roughly a quarter of the total U.S. workforce has been put out of work since the COVID-19 pandemic caused government officials to shut down most or all businesses deemed non-essential, with another 2.1 million Americans filing jobless claims over the past week, Politico reported.
Another 1.2 million people applied for unemployment benefits under a temporary program for people who are typically ineligible for unemployment, such as self-employed workers. There may be some overlap of people who applied for both. Overall, 40.8 million Americans have filed for unemployment in the past 10 weeks.
Andrew Stettner, a senior fellow at The Century Foundation, told Politico that about half the people who have applied for benefits since the coronavirus shutdowns began have received them, while others are stuck waiting as overwhelmed state agencies with sometimes unreliable websites and processes try to keep up.
A previous COVID-19 relief package boosted unemployment benefits temporarily, and a University of Chicago study showed that more than two-thirds of people receiving unemployment may be getting more in benefits than they would’ve gotten from their jobs. The relief package added a $600 per week supplement to the standard benefits. (Read more from “Another 2.1 Million People Filed for Unemployment Last Week” HERE)
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