The latest unemployment numbers came out today and it isn’t good news for workers in our area.
Pennsylvania reported nearly 11,000 new people seeking unemployment benefits during the last week of December while New Jersey reported more than 7,000 workers in the same boat. Cuts to manufacturing and other fields in both states led to the layoffs.
Overall, the number of Americans seeking unemployment benefits fell 15,000 last week to a seasonally adjusted 330,000, a sign of fewer layoffs and that hiring will likely continue to be steady, according to U.S. Department of Labor data.
Here are the states with the biggest increases and decreases in jobless claim applications. The state-level data are for the week ended Dec. 28, one week behind the national level data:
States with the biggest increases:
Michigan: Up 16,056, due to layoffs in manufacturing
Pennsylvania: Up 10,601, due to layoffs in transportation, manufacturing, construction and administrative services
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New Jersey: Up 7,345, due to layoffs in education, public administration, manufacturing and real estate
States with the biggest decreases:
California: Down 14,635, due to fewer layoffs in the service industry
Texas: Down 6,723, no reason given
Florida: down 3,738, due to fewer layoffs in agriculture, construction, manufacturing, retail, wholesale trade and services
