Millions of people across the country lost their jobs due to the problems caused by the coronavirus pandemic. Unfortunately, some people are still out of work and it won’t be easy to solve this issue in a short period of time. Based on the information provided by the Labor Department, jobless claims totaled 900,000 for the week ended January 16. This fact once more underlines the scale of the problem. Unfortunately, Americans are struggling to cope with challenges.
It is worth mentioning that, the total was below the previous week’s count of 926,000, which was revised lower by 39,000.
Interestingly, counting claims showed a slight decrease for the week, dropping by 127,000 to 5.05 million.
People should keep in mind that, weekly jobless claims had been trending lower since exploding in March and April in the early days of the pandemic. However, this is not the end of the story, as claims began drifting higher again in October due to renewed business restrictions.
Jobless claims and interesting details
It is no secret that the hospitality industry in the U.S. and other parts of the world suffered tremendous losses. Importantly, hotels, bars, restaurants, and casinos either closed their doors or made other tough decisions. Unfortunately, in January alone, the industry lost 498,000 workers.
People should take into account that, the latest jobless claims showed that the total of Americans receiving unemployment benefits continues to decline, but largely due to a drop in pandemic-related programs as 2020 came to a close.
Interestingly, there were just under 16 million benefit recipients in the most recent data, down from 18.4 million.
It is worth noting that, several big states that imposed more severe restrictions saw the previous week’s rise in claims tempered. Importantly, California, New York as well as Pennsylvania all saw notable declines. Interestingly, gains came from Arizona and Illinois.
As stated above, the coronavirus pandemic created a lot of issues for companies as well as individuals. Unfortunately, millions of people across the country lost their jobs in 2020. Moreover, companies are struggling to deal with challenges. As a result, they continue to reduce the number of employees in 2021. The new administration should work with lawmakers to support the country’s economy. However, in the case of the hospitality industry, it could take several years to return to pre-coronavirus pandemic results. Moreover, without financial aid, it will be really hard to solve all issues.
COMMENTS