The staggering numbers are in.
3.3 million people filed claims for unemployment in the United States in last week alone, as the Covid-19 pandemic shut down large parts of America’s economy.
According to the Washington Post, the labor department provided the number of new jobless claims filed by individuals seeking unemployment benefits, citing a rise by more than 3 million to 3.28 million from 281,000 the previous week.
This figure is a sobering reality as it is the highest ever reported, beating the previous record of 695,000 claims filed the week ending October 2, 1982.
These numbers offer the first official glimpse of the severe economic downturn that the US faces as companies shutter businesses and states across the country move to prevent people from gathering in crowds in an attempt to contain the infectious coronavirus.
The labor department said, nearly every state felt the impact of Covid-19. Particularly in the service industries.
Accommodation and food services were hit hard, although states also cited healthcare and social assistance, arts, entertainment and recreation, transportation and warehousing, and manufacturing industries taking a hit as well.
The Trump administration moved to
to block states from releasing daily figures on the soaring unemployment crisis, ahead of the labor department’s data release.
