Unemployment Claims Slowing Down

While unemployment continues to increase at an unprecedented pace, there are signs it’s slowing down.

For instance, last week, for the first time since the start of the pandemic, the U.S. saw less than 2 million new unemployment claims. For the week ending May 30, the country saw 1.87 million new claims.

That brings the number of claims filed since the beginning of March to 43.1 million. That’s equivalent to approximately 26 percent of the labor force.

During the past seven days since the Urban Milwaukee last reported on new unemployment claims, Wisconsin has seen 23,298 new claims. During that same period last year, Wisconsin saw 4,428.

The total number of new claims in Wisconsin since March 15th is now 629,854. That’s equivalent to approximately 20 percent of the state’s labor force.

Following a supreme court ruling in mid-May that tossed out the state’s Safer At Home order, many counties and municipalities around the state have relaxed restrictions on activity that created the massive unemployment crisis. And on Thursday, the city of Milwaukee announced that it would be allowing bars and restaurants to reopen at 2 p.m. on Friday May 5, at 25 percent capacity.

This will likely slow down the unemployment rate locally and around the state as many previously employed in industries shut down return to work.

As of the middle of April, the estimated unemployment rate released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics was approximately 20 percent. That number is a correction from the 14.7 percent number they released that was calculated using incorrectly classified data.