Long-term joblessness on rise

Growing number of New Yorkers report being out of work for more than six months

Federal unemployment data shows the number of New Yorkers telling the government they've been out of work for more than six months is steadily climbing.

During the week ending Sept. 5, nearly 97,000 New Yorkers filed claims to receive a federal unemployment benefit available for people who have been out of work for more than 26 weeks, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. That was on top of more than 80,000 people who filed the claims the week before.

In addition, the number of New Yorkers seeking benefits available only to those who have been unemployed for more than nine months has also increased slightly. Over 33,800 people sought this extended benefit the week ending Sept. 5, up from 32,874 the week prior.

Taken together, the numbers show that hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers are experiencing longer-lasting unemployment even as the state reopens during the coronavirus pandemic.

New Yorkers have access to extended unemployment benefits under federal rules because of the state's high rate of unemployment, according to the state Department of Labor.

The state has the fifth-highest rate of people accessing unemployment insurance of all states — 13.7 percent. Hawaii has the highest rate at 19.8 percent, the U.S. Department of Labor found.

In New York, more than 2.25 million people have qualified for unemployment benefits during the pandemic, with the state paying billions in assistance in addition to federal benefits that have been supplied by the U.S. Department of Labor and Federal Emergency Management Agency.

Only California and North Carolina had more state residents accessing a federal pandemic unemployment program intended for people unemployed for more than six months. California also had more residents filing claims for the federal benefits for people out of work for more than nine months.

The programs are in addition to traditional state unemployment benefits and special pandemic benefits for people who are self-employed or independent contractors, who would not normally qualify for aid.

Roughly 1.25 million selfemployed or independent contractor in New York received the pandemic benefit the week ending Sept. 5.

According to the state Department of Labor, the unemployment rate in the AlbanySchenectady-troy region was 8.8 percent in August, more than double what it was in August of 2019.