Weekly jobless claims steady, national numbers rise
New Michigan jobless claims last week remained virtually unchanged from the previous week but still considerably higher than pre-pandemic levels from a year ago.
There were 11,060 new claims filed in Michigan for the week ending March 13, according to numbers released Thursday by the U.S. Labor Department, down slightly from 11,393 adjusted claims the previous week.
Nationally, new jobless claims rose unexpectedly to 770,000 last week, up from 725,000 the week before, indicating some industries struggle to keep workers on the payrolls even as more vaccines are administered.
In Michigan, continuing claims for unemployment also remained steady at 157,026, down slightly from 158,158 the previous week but still more than twice pre-pandemic levels.
Continuing layoffs are occurring even as the overall job market has shown solid improvement. Last month, U.S. employers added a robust 379,000 jobs, the most since October and a sign that the economy is strengthening as consumers spend more and states and cities ease business restrictions.
The $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan signed into law is also expected to help accelerate growth, especially with most adults this week receiving $1,400 stimulus checks that should fuel more spending.
An extension of $300 weekly unemployment benefits into early September will provide support, too, along with money for vaccines and treatments, school re-openings, state and local governments and ailing industries ranging from airlines to concert halls.
“Labor market strains are ongoing, but we expect filings (for unemployment aid) to start declining as restrictions are lifted and more normal operations resume,” Rubeela Farooqi, chief U.S. economist at High Frequency Economics, said in a research note. “As businesses return to full capacity, job and income prospects will improve and, combined with fiscal support, will provide a powerful lift to the economy.
By most barometers, business activity in the economy’s vast and hardhit service sector is still far from normal.
The data firm Womply said, for example, that as of early last week 63% of movie theaters, galleries and other entertainment venues nationally were closed.
So were 39% of bars, 32% of gyms and other sports and recreation businesses and 30% of restaurants.
The Michigan Unemployment Insurance Agency is urging Individuals with claims of any type to continue to certify as usual. Most claimants will not experience a gap in benefits as long as they remain eligible and continue to certify, the agency said.
Unemployment provisions under the federal American Rescue Plan extended some federal jobless assistance from March 13 to Sept. 4, 2021:
• Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA), which provides coverage to the self-employed, gig workers and others in non-traditional employment.
• Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation Program (PEUC), which provides additional weeks of benefits to those who exhaust their regular state benefits.
• Pandemic Unemployment Compensation (PUC), which provides all unemployment recipients with an additional $300 per week.
• Mixed Earners Unemployment Compensation (MEUC), which provides an additional $100 per week to claimants on some benefits programs who have selfemployment income of at least $5,000.
• The relief package also includes the extension of 100% federal financing for the use of the Work Share program.
• “Continuation of these federal benefit programs will provide some financial breathing room to Michigan workers as we continue to fight the effects of COVID-19,” said Liza Estlund Olson, acting director of the Unemployment Insurance Agency. “Because this legislation extends the current federal programs, we expect to be able to implement the changes without a delay in payments.”