Unemployment claims soar for second straight week in Pierce County, Washington state
With more businesses adhering to the coronavirus restrictions, unemployment claims continue to soar across Pierce County and Washington state.
In Pierce County, 22,145 people filed unemployment claims for the week ending March 28, according to new data from the Washington State Employment Security Department. That’s a 50% jump from the week ending March 21. In the past two weeks, 36,875 Pierce residents have now filed a claim after losing their jobs, which is about 8% of the total workforce.
Across the state 181,975 people filed new claims for the week ending March 28, a 41% increase compared to the previous week. By comparison, this is seven times the peak week during the 2008/2009 recession, which saw 26,075 weekly initial claims.
“These numbers suggest two contrasting points: 1) that more and more businesses and individuals are abiding by the ‘Stay Home, Stay Healthy’ order — which is critical for the health of our fellow Washingtonians, and 2) this virus is having a profoundly negative impact on our economic health, and that Washington businesses and workers are hurting like never before,” Suzi LeVine, Employment Security commissioner, said in a news release accompanying the data.
Last week it was the construction industry that took the biggest hit across the state as the non-essential business restrictions took hold. Construction across the state had 28,021 initial claims last week, up 438% from the previous week. In the week ending March 21, it was restaurants and accommodations that were hardest hit.
This story was originally published April 2, 2020 at 11:02 AM with the headline "Unemployment claims soar for second straight week in Pierce County, Washington state."
