News Release Connect with DOL at https://blog.dol.gov TRANSMISSION OF MATERIALS IN THIS RELEASE IS EMBARGOED UNTIL 8:30 A.M. (Eastern) Thursday, September 3, 2020 REVISION TO SEASONAL ADJUSTMENT FACTORS Beginning with the Unemployment Insurance (UI) Weekly Claims News Release issued Thursday, September 3, 2020, the methodology used to seasonally adjust the national initial claims and continued claims reflects additive factors as opposed to multiplicative factors. Seasonal adjustment factors can be either multiplicative or additive. A multiplicative seasonal effect is assumed to be proportional to the level of the series. A sudden large increase in the level of the series will be accompanied by a proportionally large seasonal effect. In contrast, an additive seasonal effect is assumed to be unaffected by the level of the series. In times of relative economic stability, the multiplicative option is generally preferred over the additive option. However, in the presence of a large level shift in a time series, multiplicative seasonal adjustment factors can result in systematic over- or under-adjustment of the series; in such cases, additive seasonal adjustment factors are preferred since they tend to more accurately track seasonal fluctuations in the series and have smaller revisions. Prior to September 2020, the seasonally adjusted unemployment insurance claims series used multiplicative seasonal adjustment factors. Starting in September Bureau of Labor Statistics staff, who provide the seasonal adjustment factors, specified these series as additive. In accordance with the usual practice, the seasonal adjustment models and factors will be reviewed at the beginning of each calendar year, when prior years of seasonally adjusted estimates will be subject to revision. UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE WEEKLY CLAIMS SEASONALLY ADJUSTED DATA In the week ending August 29, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 881,000, a decrease of 130,000 from the previous week's revised level. The previous week's level was revised up by 5,000 from 1,006,000 to 1,011,000. The 4-week moving average was 991,750, a decrease of 77,500 from the previous week's revised average. The previous week's average was revised up by 1,250 from 1,068,000 to 1,069,250. The advance seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate was 9.1 percent for the week ending August 22, a decrease of 0.8 percentage point from the previous week's unrevised rate. The advance number for seasonally adjusted insured unemployment during the week ending August 22 was 13,254,000, a decrease of 1,238,000 from the previous week's revised level. The previous week's level was revised down by 43,000 from 14,535,000 to 14,492,000. The 4-week moving average was 14,496,250, a decrease of 709,000 from the previous week's revised average. The previous week's average was revised down by 10,500 from 15,215,750 to 15,205,250. 1 UNADJUSTED DATA The advance number of actual initial claims under state programs, unadjusted, totaled 833,352 in the week ending August 29, an increase of 7,591 (or 0.9 percent) from the previous week. There were 179,516 initial claims in the comparable week in 2019. In addition, for the week ending August 29, 51 states reported 759,482 initial claims for Pandemic Unemployment Assistance. The advance unadjusted insured unemployment rate was 9.0 percent during the week ending August 22, a decrease of 0.5 percentage point from the prior week. The advance unadjusted number for persons claiming UI benefits in state programs totaled 13,104,366, a decrease of 764,713 (or -5.5 percent) from the preceding week. A year earlier the rate was 1.1 percent and the volume was 1,566,934. 2 The total number of people claiming benefits in all programs for the week ending August 15 was 29,224,546, an increase of 2,195,835 from the previous week. There were 1,639,622 persons claiming benefits in all programs in the comparable week in 2019. During the week ending August 15, Extended Benefits were available in the following 52 states: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, the Virgin Islands, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming. Initial claims for UI benefits filed by former Federal civilian employees totaled 1,051 in the week ending August 22, a decrease of 94 from the prior week. There were 802 initial claims filed by newly discharged veterans, a decrease of 228 from the preceding week. There were 14,165 former Federal civilian employees claiming UI benefits for the week ending August 15, an increase of 197 from the previous week. Newly discharged veterans claiming benefits totaled 13,684, an increase of 118 from the prior week. During the week ending Aug 15, 49 states reported 13,570,327 individuals claiming Pandemic Unemployment Assistance benefits and 49 states reported 1,393,314 individuals claiming Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation benefits. The highest insured unemployment rates in the week ending August 15 were in Hawaii (18.6), Nevada (16.4), California (16.3), Puerto Rico (16.1), New York (15.2), Connecticut (14.0), Louisiana (13.3), Georgia (12.6), the Virgin Islands (11.8), District of Columbia (11.7), and Massachusetts (11.7). The largest increases in initial claims for the week ending August 22 were in California (+6,562), Illinois (+3,856), Pennsylvania (+1,926), Kansas (+1,061), and Rhode Island (+503), while the largest decreases were in Florida (-21,127), Texas (-9,248), New Jersey (-5,235), Virginia (-3,715), and North Carolina (-3,708). 3 UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE DATA FOR REGULAR STATE PROGRAMS WEEK ENDING Initial Claims (SA) Initial Claims (NSA) 4-Wk Moving Average (SA) August 29 881,000 833,352 991,750 August 22 1,011,000 825,761 1,069,250 Change -130,000 +7,591 -77,500 August 15 1,104,000 889,738 1,175,250 Prior Year1 219,000 179,516 216,750 WEEK ENDING Insured Unemployment (SA) Insured Unemployment (NSA) 4-Wk Moving Average (SA) Insured Unemployment Rate (SA)2 Insured Unemployment Rate (NSA)2 August 22 13,254,000 13,104,366 14,496,250 9.1% 9.0% August 15 14,492,000 13,869,079 15,205,250 9.9% 9.5% Change -1,238,000 -764,713 -709,000 -0.8 -0.5 August 8 14,759,000 14,182,946 15,820,000 10.1% 9.7% Prior Year1 1,683,000 1,566,934 1,697,000 1.2% 1.1% INITIAL CLAIMS FILED IN FEDERAL PROGRAMS (UNADJUSTED) WEEK ENDING Pandemic Unemployment Assistance August 29 759,482 August 22 607,808 Change +151,674 August 15 524,986 WEEK ENDING Federal Employees (UCFE) Newly Discharged Veterans (UCX) August 22 1,051 802 August 15 1,145 1,030 Change -94 -228 Prior Year1 644 510 Change -306,659 +197 +118 +2,597,557 -14,488 -45,914 -347 -34,629 +2,195,835 Prior Year1 1,613,393 6,824 5,597 NA NA 0 4,559 9,249 1,639,622 PERSONS CLAIMING UI BENEFITS IN ALL PROGRAMS (UNADJUSTED) WEEK ENDING Regular State Federal Employees Newly Discharged Veterans Pandemic Unemployment Assistance3 Pandemic Emergency UC4 Extended Benefits5 State Additional Benefits6 STC / Workshare 7 TOTAL8 August 15 13,791,877 14,165 13,684 13,570,327 1,393,314 168,620 2,327 270,232 29,224,546 August 8 14,098,536 13,968 13,566 10,972,770 1,407,802 214,534 2,674 304,861 27,028,711 FOOTNOTES SA - Seasonally Adjusted Data, NSA - Not Seasonally Adjusted Data 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. Prior year is comparable to most recent data. Most recent week used covered employment of 146,125,989 as denominator. Information on the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) program can be found in UIPL 16-20: PUA Program information Information on the Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation (PEUC) program can be found in Unemployment Insurance Program Letter (UIPL) 17-20: PEUC Program information Information on the EB program can be found here: EB Program information Some states maintain additional benefit programs for those claimants who exhaust regular benefits, and when applicable, extended benefits. Information on states that participate, and the extent of benefits paid, can be found starting on page 4-4 of this link: Extensions and Special Programs PDF Information on STC/Worksharing can be found starting on page 4-8 of the following link: Extensions and Special Programs PDF Totals include PUA Unemployment for the appropriate corresponding week. 4 Advance State Claims - Not Seasonally Adjusted STATE Alabama Alaska Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware District of Columbia Florida Georgia Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina North Dakota Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania Puerto Rico Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah Vermont Virgin Islands Virginia Washington West Virginia Wisconsin Wyoming US Total Initial Claims Filed During Week Ended August 29 Advance Prior Wk Change 7,820 8,676 -856 4,322 4,344 -22 13,525 12,487 1,038 4,733 5,660 -927 236,874 196,916 39,958 5,804 6,483 -679 5,411 6,269 -858 1,396 1,678 -282 1,347 1,645 -298 39,335 51,647 -12,312 50,498 56,768 -6,270 6,893 5,775 1,118 3,469 3,794 -325 24,116 26,262 -2,146 10,783 10,597 186 6,377 6,384 -7 15,702 15,409 293 16,195 16,321 -126 14,615 12,529 2,086 1,161 1,120 41 6,536 7,644 -1,108 18,054 17,594 460 15,108 19,997 -4,889 10,286 10,817 -531 3,980 4,496 -516 9,286 9,283 3 2,395 2,320 75 2,338 2,802 -464 10,189 8,858 1,331 2,137 2,578 -441 19,249 20,182 -933 4,133 4,312 -179 63,355 62,683 672 12,336 13,680 -1,344 866 720 146 17,598 19,102 -1,504 5,125 6,064 -939 4,960 5,152 -192 24,131 27,510 -3,379 1,759 2,356 -597 3,617 3,186 431 5,019 5,496 -477 594 802 -208 12,035 11,588 447 56,759 52,152 4,607 2,603 2,980 -377 707 686 21 16 193 -177 11,633 11,436 197 21,296 21,404 -108 1,849 2,082 -233 12,260 13,879 -1,619 767 963 -196 833,352 825,761 7,591 Insured Unemployment For Week Ended August 22 Advance Prior Wk Change 42,553 51,991 -9,438 29,146 31,673 -2,527 196,356 205,978 -9,622 40,485 48,069 -7,584 2,600,822 2,837,991 -237,169 180,892 180,390 502 207,836 230,642 -22,806 35,373 33,171 2,202 65,328 68,248 -2,920 414,533 458,954 -44,421 536,035 553,713 -17,678 127,209 115,280 11,929 13,225 16,414 -3,189 555,582 593,305 -37,723 162,998 170,341 -7,343 76,832 83,312 -6,480 69,002 61,802 7,200 116,332 127,811 -11,479 235,785 250,720 -14,935 37,636 41,459 -3,823 170,111 176,795 -6,684 401,939 419,013 -17,074 392,209 462,183 -69,974 227,541 231,989 -4,448 96,491 90,458 6,033 103,042 118,713 -15,671 24,276 26,318 -2,042 25,130 30,160 -5,030 211,302 228,203 -16,901 43,967 47,758 -3,791 408,589 411,019 -2,430 88,432 89,940 -1,508 1,418,971 1,428,613 -9,642 170,436 191,822 -21,386 17,668 16,327 1,341 307,252 347,525 -40,273 108,965 122,513 -13,548 170,493 164,103 6,390 565,339 629,881 -64,542 142,579 138,142 4,437 48,253 49,423 -1,170 125,033 143,801 -18,768 10,807 9,117 1,690 192,947 204,952 -12,005 1,032,673 1,091,961 -59,288 40,048 46,806 -6,758 28,027 28,390 -363 4,624 4,318 306 233,499 249,745 -16,246 334,130 284,224 49,906 54,177 52,079 2,098 151,705 161,697 -9,992 9,751 9,827 -76 13,104,366 13,869,079 -764,713 Note: Advance claims are not directly comparable to claims reported in prior weeks. Advance claims are reported by the state liable for paying the unemployment compensation, whereas previous weeks reported claims reflect claimants by state of residence. In addition, claims reported as "workshare equivalent" in the previous week are added to the advance claims as a proxy for the current week's "workshare equivalent" activity. 5 Seasonally Adjusted US Weekly UI Claims (in thousands) Week Ending August 24, 2019 August 31, 2019 September 7, 2019 September 14, 2019 September 21, 2019 September 28, 2019 October 5, 2019 October 12, 2019 October 19, 2019 October 26, 2019 November 2, 2019 November 9, 2019 November 16, 2019 November 23, 2019 November 30, 2019 December 7, 2019 December 14, 2019 December 21, 2019 December 28, 2019 January 4, 2020 January 11, 2020 January 18, 2020 January 25, 2020 February 1, 2020 February 8, 2020 February 15, 2020 February 22, 2020 February 29, 2020 March 7, 2020 March 14, 2020 March 21, 2020 March 28, 2020 April 4, 2020 April 11, 2020 April 18, 2020 April 25, 2020 May 2, 2020 May 9, 2020 May 16, 2020 May 23, 2020 May 30, 2020 June 6, 2020 June 13, 2020 June 20, 2020 June 27, 2020 July 4, 2020 July 11, 2020 July 18, 2020 July 25, 2020 August 1, 2020 August 8, 2020 August 15, 2020 August 22, 2020 August 29, 2020 Initial Claims 215 219 208 211 215 218 212 218 213 217 212 222 223 211 206 237 229 218 220 212 207 220 212 201 204 215 220 217 211 282 3,307 6,867 6,615 5,237 4,442 3,867 3,176 2,687 2,446 2,123 1,897 1,566 1,540 1,482 1,408 1,310 1,308 1,422 1,435 1,191 971 1,104 1,011 881 Change from Prior Week 0 4 -11 3 4 3 -6 6 -5 4 -5 10 1 -12 -5 31 -8 -11 2 -8 -5 13 -8 -11 3 11 5 -3 -6 71 3,025 3,560 -252 -1,378 -795 -575 -691 -489 -241 -323 -226 -331 -26 -58 -74 -98 -2 114 13 -244 -220 133 -93 -130 Change from Insured Prior Unemployment Week 1,683 -16 1,683 0 1,675 -8 1,672 -3 1,667 -5 1,698 31 1,689 -9 1,691 2 1,700 9 1,695 -5 1,702 7 1,697 -5 1,665 -32 1,697 32 1,700 3 1,725 25 1,716 -9 1,728 12 1,775 47 1,759 -16 1,735 -24 1,704 -31 1,753 49 1,678 -75 1,729 51 1,693 -36 1,720 27 1,699 -21 1,702 3 1,784 82 3,059 1,275 7,446 4,387 11,914 4,468 15,819 3,905 18,011 2,192 22,377 4,366 22,548 171 24,912 2,364 20,841 -4,071 21,268 427 20,606 -662 20,289 -317 19,231 -1,058 18,760 -471 17,760 -1,000 17,304 -456 16,151 -1,153 16,951 800 16,090 -861 15,480 -610 14,759 -721 14,492 -267 13,254 -1,238 4-Week Average 215.50 216.75 214.25 213.25 213.25 213.00 214.00 215.75 215.25 215.00 215.00 216.00 218.50 217.00 215.50 219.25 220.75 222.50 226.00 219.75 214.25 214.75 212.75 210.00 209.25 208.00 210.00 214.00 215.75 232.50 1,004.25 2,666.75 4,267.75 5,506.50 5,790.25 5,040.25 4,180.50 3,543.00 3,044.00 2,608.00 2,288.25 2,008.00 1,781.50 1,621.25 1,499.00 1,435.00 1,377.00 1,362.00 1,368.75 1,339.00 1,254.75 1,175.25 1,069.25 991.75 6 4-Week Average 1,697.00 1,688.00 1,685.00 1,678.25 1,674.25 1,678.00 1,681.50 1,686.25 1,694.50 1,693.75 1,697.00 1,698.50 1,689.75 1,690.25 1,689.75 1,696.75 1,709.50 1,717.25 1,736.00 1,744.50 1,749.25 1,743.25 1,737.75 1,717.50 1,716.00 1,713.25 1,705.00 1,710.25 1,703.50 1,726.25 2,061.00 3,497.75 6,050.75 9,559.50 13,297.50 17,030.25 19,688.75 21,962.00 22,669.50 22,392.25 21,906.75 20,751.00 20,348.50 19,721.50 19,010.00 18,263.75 17,493.75 17,041.50 16,624.00 16,168.00 15,820.00 15,205.25 14,496.25 IUR 1.2 1.2 1.2 1.2 1.2 1.2 1.2 1.2 1.2 1.2 1.2 1.2 1.2 1.2 1.2 1.2 1.2 1.2 1.2 1.2 1.2 1.2 1.2 1.2 1.2 1.2 1.2 1.2 1.2 1.2 2.1 5.1 8.2 10.9 12.4 15.4 15.5 17.1 14.3 14.6 14.1 13.9 13.2 12.9 12.2 11.8 11.1 11.6 11.0 10.6 10.1 9.9 9.1 Pandemic Unemployment Assistance Claims - Not Seasonally Adjusted STATE Alabama Alaska Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware District of Columbia Florida Georgia Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina North Dakota Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania Puerto Rico Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah Vermont Virgin Islands Virginia Washington West Virginia Wisconsin Wyoming US Total PUA Initial Claims Filed During Week Ended August 29 Advance Prior Wk Change 1,911 1,584 327 315 311 4 64,178 39,843 24,335 10,912 15,381 -4,469 405,878 259,735 146,143 0 16,417 -16,417 1,437 1,231 206 160 166 -6 177 237 -60 8,374 8,418 -44 6,034 6,498 -464 2,927 2,744 183 72 232 -160 4,433 4,169 264 7,643 6,457 1,186 1,137 1,122 15 13,580 15,189 -1,609 2,619 2,884 -265 6,819 5,346 1,473 2,021 1,344 677 3,141 3,338 -197 11,032 12,617 -1,585 14,192 14,064 128 9 1 8 2,039 1,698 341 1,445 1,558 -113 2,948 2,151 797 1,035 1,176 -141 10,411 10,871 -460 744 438 306 10,451 11,407 -956 1,457 1,594 -137 30,859 30,677 182 7,338 8,261 -923 713 741 -28 15,231 13,544 1,687 896 1,072 -176 2,500 2,563 -63 35,340 36,352 -1,012 4,480 6,400 -1,920 21,584 20,405 1,179 4,963 5,338 -375 89 122 -33 4,711 4,430 281 20,109 16,085 4,024 755 952 -197 60 56 4 180 221 -41 3,499 3,739 -240 4,609 4,286 323 0 0 0 1,871 2,124 -253 164 219 -55 759,482 607,808 151,674 PUA Continued Claims For Week Ended Aug 15 Aug 15 Aug 8 Change 31,846 35,635 -3,789 11,375 10,743 632 296,582 279,232 17,350 102,407 119,680 -17,273 5,424,687 3,074,568 2,350,119 83,926 79,038 4,888 56,929 58,351 -1,422 7,797 8,082 -285 13,434 13,746 -312 0 0 0 250,784 255,618 -4,834 78,557 95,079 -16,522 14,737 14,963 -226 118,968 119,766 -798 141,404 135,014 6,390 13,593 13,447 146 225,271 221,885 3,386 54,400 29,485 24,915 132,988 132,403 585 23,246 25,185 -1,939 229,071 229,469 -398 479,294 489,525 -10,231 815,217 689,337 125,880 46,470 48,643 -2,173 30,791 36,604 -5,813 59,261 58,901 360 46,527 33,150 13,377 23,949 24,472 -523 107,334 109,617 -2,283 19,895 18,546 1,349 404,661 408,172 -3,511 35,703 37,087 -1,384 1,473,822 1,306,485 167,337 155,254 168,171 -12,917 6,220 6,253 -33 386,218 400,193 -13,975 0 0 0 88,031 87,001 1,030 845,542 909,735 -64,193 263,590 278,030 -14,440 55,720 53,449 2,271 66,565 46,018 20,547 6,421 3,762 2,659 137,508 136,022 1,486 279,245 249,968 29,277 8,311 8,797 -486 10,453 10,817 -364 0 0 0 206,968 216,068 -9,100 145,469 125,986 19,483 0 0 0 51,689 58,431 -6,742 2,197 2,141 56 13,570,327 10,972,770 2,597,557 Note: Information on the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) program can be found in UIPL 16-20: PUA Program information 7 Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation Claims - Not Seasonally Adjusted STATE August 15 August 8 Alabama Alaska Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware District of Columbia Florida Georgia Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina North Dakota Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania Puerto Rico Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah Vermont Virgin Islands Virginia Washington West Virginia Wisconsin Wyoming US Total 79,702 4,783 15,531 21,879 344,378 20,793 12,559 2,147 2,114 34,703 0 0 6,448 32,245 7,084 17,132 6,819 0 3,116 6,205 10,567 43,071 51,511 28,211 6,776 22,113 3,843 2,702 21,635 962 52,895 5,285 71,910 210,657 4,198 17,191 0 15,962 42,210 4,712 5,409 30,639 355 15,486 21,001 8,105 1,324 79 43,794 5,064 4,819 21,502 1,688 1,393,314 78,944 4,244 13,951 20,251 394,359 11,128 12,512 2,231 2,167 51,568 0 0 6,132 33,974 7,025 14,520 5,143 0 3,040 5,804 10,294 44,618 42,520 26,649 7,324 16,832 3,464 2,692 19,798 957 52,722 4,864 70,896 208,596 4,139 17,181 0 15,300 42,023 5,089 4,989 23,612 320 12,146 17,924 7,934 1,254 56 42,600 5,442 4,758 22,182 1,634 1,407,802 PEUC Claims Filed During Weeks Ended: Change August 1 758 539 1,580 1,628 -49,981 9,665 47 -84 -53 -16,865 0 0 316 -1,729 59 2,612 1,676 0 76 401 273 -1,547 8,991 1,562 -548 5,281 379 10 1,837 5 173 421 1,014 2,061 59 10 0 662 187 -377 420 7,027 35 3,340 3,077 171 70 23 1,194 -378 61 -680 54 -14,488 77,381 4,066 13,287 17,975 290,941 17,003 11,870 2,509 2,208 47,118 0 0 5,639 31,896 7,311 14,797 0 0 3,179 5,253 10,185 42,630 42,575 24,636 8,753 12,429 3,232 2,362 18,018 7,365 52,447 5,096 93,823 201,964 3,882 17,981 0 14,274 37,975 5,409 4,446 19,827 363 9,539 18,850 7,186 1,240 89 37,666 5,353 4,892 20,559 1,646 1,289,125 July 25 74,759 4,158 13,541 14,907 270,747 7,262 0 2,458 2,204 50,374 0 0 5,679 34,499 7,372 12,903 2,497 0 3,399 4,656 11,282 40,762 39,866 24,110 7,689 13,114 3,268 2,219 15,617 318 54,847 5,171 89,643 199,881 3,967 18,753 0 13,477 42,208 5,381 3,969 18,505 338 6,872 15,922 6,580 1,234 96 42,350 5,252 1,230 16,425 1,494 1,223,255 Note: Information on the Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation (PEUC) program can be found in Unemployment Insurance Program Letter (UIPL) 17-20: PEUC Program information 8 Extended Benefits (EB) Claims - Not Seasonally Adjusted STATE Alabama Alaska Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware District of Columbia Florida Georgia Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina North Dakota Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania Puerto Rico Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah Vermont Virgin Islands Virginia Washington West Virginia Wisconsin Wyoming US Total EB Claims Filed During Weeks Ended: August 15 August 8 Change 0 782 314 1,425 34,340 38 4,699 210 0 319 0 6 226 16,168 2,178 2,390 445 0 951 42 2,427 0 14 5,077 1,153 3,357 395 117 2,338 280 16,644 1,163 28,283 7,076 285 6,148 0 2,332 12,817 373 905 3,216 0 1,363 0 321 329 0 0 7,623 5 28 18 168,620 0 668 285 1,279 70,798 42 4,181 296 0 299 0 7 199 34,296 1,868 2,106 0 0 735 10 1,979 0 1 4,607 1,088 2,976 329 90 1,477 264 16,345 930 26,323 6,298 249 4,970 0 1,979 14,623 985 617 2,968 0 1,115 0 78 274 0 0 6,877 6 12 5 214,534 0 114 29 146 -36,458 -4 518 -86 0 20 0 -1 27 -18,128 310 284 445 0 216 32 448 0 13 470 65 381 66 27 861 16 299 233 1,960 778 36 1,178 0 353 -1,806 -612 288 248 0 248 0 243 55 0 0 746 -1 16 13 -45,914 Note: Information on the EB program can be found here: EB Program information 9 INITIAL CLAIMS FILED DURING WEEK ENDED AUGUST 22 STATE NAME Alabama Alaska Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware District of Columbia Florida Georgia Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina North Dakota Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania Puerto Rico Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah Vermont Virgin Islands Virginia Washington West Virginia Wisconsin Wyoming Totals STATE 8,676 4,344 12,487 5,660 196,916 6,483 6,269 1,678 1,645 51,647 56,768 5,775 3,794 26,262 10,597 6,384 15,409 16,321 12,529 1,120 7,644 17,594 19,997 10,817 4,496 9,283 2,320 2,802 8,858 2,578 20,182 4,312 62,683 13,680 720 19,102 6,064 5,152 27,510 2,356 3,186 5,496 802 11,588 52,152 2,980 686 193 11,436 21,404 2,082 13,879 963 825,761 INSURED UNEMPLOYMENT FOR WEEK ENDED AUGUST 15 ALL PROGRAMS CHANGE FROM EXCLUDING LAST YEAR RAILROAD STATE (%) 2 WEEK AGO UCFE 1 UCX 1 RETIREMENT 51,991 2.7 -6,284 36,043 88 74 52,153 31,673 10.3 -1,226 26,817 125 63 31,861 205,978 7.1 -5,234 178,173 371 239 206,588 48,069 4.0 -4,877 37,157 141 63 48,273 2,837,991 16.3 31,151 2,530,229 2,206 2,209 2,842,406 180,390 6.7 -16,906 164,092 170 415 180,975 230,642 14.0 6,121 194,442 214 138 230,994 33,171 7.4 -2,015 27,932 20 48 33,239 68,248 11.7 -1,392 61,012 836 9 69,093 458,954 5.3 -53,573 415,155 224 294 459,472 553,713 12.6 -1,766 528,164 591 484 554,788 115,280 18.6 -7,988 108,734 293 191 115,764 16,414 2.2 -2,358 12,010 12 20 16,446 593,305 10.0 -10,983 508,273 534 331 594,170 170,341 5.6 -12,742 157,180 137 146 170,624 83,312 5.4 870 68,630 136 64 83,512 61,802 4.5 -3,624 54,293 79 74 61,955 127,811 6.7 -565 110,500 117 284 128,212 250,720 13.3 -4,348 234,579 153 59 250,932 41,459 6.8 -5,146 37,846 35 30 41,524 176,795 6.9 -3,773 147,833 273 219 177,287 419,013 11.7 -16,729 362,556 308 195 419,516 462,183 10.7 34,155 423,033 164 123 462,470 231,989 8.1 -12,429 207,855 152 162 232,303 90,458 8.1 -5,455 81,878 156 56 90,670 118,713 4.3 -14,017 100,246 108 89 118,910 26,318 5.8 -1,522 21,931 81 42 26,441 30,160 3.1 -1,935 27,091 38 11 30,209 228,203 16.4 -12,143 211,325 117 180 228,500 47,758 7.3 -2,078 44,230 11 19 47,788 411,019 10.2 -9,043 315,510 347 508 411,874 89,940 11.2 -3,312 82,190 353 96 90,389 1,428,613 15.2 -27,425 1,294,324 501 678 1,429,792 191,822 4.3 -26,443 171,710 396 557 192,775 16,327 3.9 -1,745 14,525 209 17 16,553 347,525 6.5 -15,371 306,478 209 356 348,090 122,513 7.8 -792 108,045 106 133 122,752 164,103 8.5 -5,802 140,252 337 127 164,567 629,881 10.8 36,865 515,766 1,159 524 631,564 138,142 16.1 -26,699 120,021 142 38 138,322 49,423 10.4 -1,672 40,935 47 24 49,494 143,801 6.9 -17,211 128,618 87 99 143,987 9,117 2.2 168 8,079 216 22 9,355 204,952 6.2 -14,071 188,342 111 132 205,195 1,091,961 8.8 -9,747 968,047 973 2,549 1,095,483 46,806 3.2 -5,104 40,524 50 39 46,895 28,390 9.4 -1,572 25,404 3 3 28,396 4,318 11.8 -392 3,890 2 4 4,324 249,745 6.7 -15,480 230,488 404 520 250,669 284,224 8.4 -15,448 240,995 382 764 285,370 52,079 7.8 -2,446 44,105 93 66 52,238 161,697 5.7 -11,573 137,540 130 89 161,916 9,827 3.6 -741 8,249 18 8 9,853 13,869,079 9.5 -313,867 12,253,276 14,165 13,684 13,896,928 CHANGE FROM LAST YEAR WEEK AGO UCFE 1 UCX 1 -2,371 6,621 20 11 -387 3,643 17 3 -288 8,952 14 14 -691 4,059 1 5 6,562 162,320 198 109 -488 4,997 18 26 -3,163 3,746 18 1 -249 1,243 3 2 -334 1,205 32 1 -21,127 45,342 33 14 -1,331 52,318 26 32 282 4,639 12 8 150 3,093 1 4 3,856 18,886 8 8 -972 8,608 16 18 387 4,285 16 8 1,061 14,226 2 2 -1,945 14,347 0 6 -1,836 10,557 24 19 -212 770 1 2 -1,409 4,938 34 27 410 13,558 28 24 -191 16,206 21 6 -1,264 8,678 15 2 -2,000 3,583 3 4 -1,371 6,660 5 0 360 1,798 9 4 -466 2,318 7 1 -2,080 6,606 6 1 -254 2,151 2 0 -5,235 12,436 36 28 -717 3,644 7 5 -15 46,143 8 39 -3,708 10,803 23 40 -135 180 4 0 -2,658 14,169 12 31 -497 4,440 18 5 -81 1,888 21 5 1,926 16,566 136 48 -634 1,138 0 3 503 2,433 1 0 -1,735 3,555 12 18 18 658 9 3 -2,825 9,594 21 17 -9,248 39,533 88 157 -3 2,130 30 2 -37 424 0 0 -34 147 0 0 -3,715 9,382 5 6 -2,601 16,624 18 22 -332 1,241 1 2 -955 10,689 10 9 102 724 1 0 -63,977 648,894 1,051 802 Figures appearing in columns showing over-the-week changes reflect all revisions in data for prior week submitted by state agencies. 1. The Unemployment Compensation program for Federal Employees (UCFE) and the Unemployment Compensation for Ex-servicemembers (UCX) exclude claims filed jointly under other programs to avoid duplication. 2. Rate is not seasonally adjusted. The source of U.S. total covered employment is BLS. 10 UNADJUSTED INITIAL CLAIMS FOR WEEK ENDED AUGUST 22, 2020 STATES WITH AN INCREASE OF MORE THAN 1,000 State CA IL PA KS Change +6,562 +3,856 +1,926 +1,061 State Supplied Comment No comment. Layoffs in the manufacturing, wholesale trade, and retail trade industries. Layoffs in the manufacturing, accommodation and food services, and construction industries. No comment. STATES WITH A DECREASE OF MORE THAN 1,000 State FL Change -21,127 TX NJ VA NC -9,248 -5,235 -3,715 -3,708 CT TN OH WA AL -3,163 -2,825 -2,658 -2,601 -2,371 NV MS KY LA SC MD MO -2,080 -2,000 -1,945 -1,836 -1,735 -1,409 -1,371 GA -1,331 MN -1,264 State Supplied Comment Fewer layoffs in the agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting, construction, manufacturing, wholesale trade, retail trade, and service industries. No comment. No comment. No comment. Fewer layoffs in the administrative and support and waste management and remediation services, accommodation and food services, and educational services industries. Fewer layoffs in the retail trade and accommodation and food services industries. No comment. No comment. No comment. Fewer layoffs in the administrative and support and waste management and remediation services, accommodation and food services, retail trade, health care and social assistance, and construction industries. No comment. No comment. No comment. No comment. No comment. No comment. Fewer layoffs in the accommodation and food services, health care and social assistance, and retail trade industries. Fewer layoffs in the transportation and warehousing, manufacturing, administrative and support and waste management and remediation services, and educational services industries. No comment. 11 TECHNICAL NOTES This news release presents the weekly unemployment insurance (UI) claims reported by each state's unemployment insurance program offices. These claims may be used for monitoring workload volume, assessing state program operations and for assessing labor market conditions. States initially report claims directly taken by the state liable for the benefit payments, regardless of where the claimant who filed the claim resided. These are the basis for the advance initial claims and continued claims reported each week. These data come from ETA 538, Advance Weekly Initial and Continued Claims Report. The following week initial claims and continued claims are revised based on a second reporting by states that reflect the claimants by state of residence. These data come from the ETA 539, Weekly Claims and Extended Benefits Trigger Data Report. A. Initial Claims An initial claim is a claim filed by an unemployed individual after a separation from an employer. The claimant requests a determination of basic eligibility for the UI program. When an initial claim is filed with a state, certain programmatic activities take place and these result in activity counts including the count of initial claims. The count of U.S. initial claims for unemployment insurance is a leading economic indicator because it is an indication of emerging labor market conditions in the country. However, these are weekly administrative data which are difficult to seasonally adjust, making the series subject to some volatility. B. Continued Weeks Claimed A person who has already filed an initial claim and who has experienced a week of unemployment then files a continued claim to claim benefits for that week of unemployment. Continued claims are also referred to as insured unemployment. The count of U.S. continued weeks claimed is also a good indicator of labor market conditions. Continued claims reflect the current number of insured unemployed workers filing for UI benefits in the nation. While continued claims are not a leading indicator (they roughly coincide with economic cycles at their peaks and lag at cycle troughs), they provide confirming evidence of the direction of the U.S. economy. C. Seasonal Adjustments and Annual Revisions Over the course of a year, the weekly changes in the levels of initial claims and continued claims undergo regularly occurring fluctuations. These fluctuations may result from seasonal changes in weather, major holidays, the opening and closing of schools, or other similar events. Because these seasonal events follow a more or less regular pattern each year, their influence on the level of a series can be tempered by adjusting for regular seasonal variation. These adjustments make trend and cycle developments easier to spot. At the beginning of each calendar year, the Bureau of Labor Statistics provides the Employment and Training Administration (ETA) with a set of seasonal factors to apply to the unadjusted data during that year. Concurrent with the implementation and release of the new seasonal factors, ETA incorporates revisions to the UI claims historical series caused by updates to the unadjusted data. 2020_revised_seasonal_factors.txt 2020_revised_seasonal_factors.xlsx Weekly Claims Archives Weekly Claims Data U.S. Department of Labor news materials are accessible at http://www.dol.gov. The Department's Reasonable Accommodation Resource Center converts Departmental information and documents into alternative formats, which include Braille and large print. For alternative format requests, please contact the Department at (202) 693-7828 (voice) or (800) 877-8339 (federal relay). U.S. Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration Washington, D.C. 20210 Release Number: USDL 20-1671-NAT Program Contacts: Thomas Stengle: (202) 693-2991 Kevin Stapleton: (202) 321-2810 Media Contact: (202) 693-4676 12