CLEVELAND, Ohio – Ohio has seen a steady decline in continued unemployment claims as people return to work after the state lifted its stay-at-home order and other coronavirus restrictions, according to the state’s latest jobless statistics.
Continued weekly unemployment claims, which represent people who have filed for benefits more than once, declined for the seventh straight week in the state, according to the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services. People who remain jobless filed 488,803 continued claims for the week ending June 13, compared to a peak of 776,302 for the week ending April 25.
The latest figures represent a decrease of 287,499 continued claims since the peak. But continued claims remain much higher than the weeks leading up to the coronavirus shutdowns, when they hovered around 70,000 per week in February and early March.
Ohio reported 32,788 new unemployment claims for the week ending June 13, a slight decrease from the revised total of from 36,154 for the week ending June 6, according to statistics from the ODJFS and the U.S. Department of Labor. Ohio has received more than 1.3 million new unemployment claims over the last 13 weeks, which is more than the combined total it received from 2017 through 2019, ODJFS said.
Ohio also received another 57,760 claims to the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance program, which the federal government set up for self-employed workers and independent contractors who do not qualify for traditional unemployment benefits.
The U.S. reported more than 1.5 million new unemployment claims across all 50 states for the week ending June 13, according to the Department of Labor.
The ODJFS has distributed more than $4.1 billion in unemployment benefits to more than 700,000 claimants over the past 13 weeks. It also issued more than $2.1 billion in PUA payments to more than 262,000 claimants.
Ohio’s unemployment rate nearly tripled to 16.8 percent in April, when coronavirus-related shutdowns were the primary reason the state lost 823,700 jobs. The unemployment rate was higher than at any point dating back to 1976 when the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics began publishing state-by-state records.
The state of Ohio has asked the Department of Labor for $3.1 billion in credit to keep its unemployment system afloat as the fallout from the pandemic continues, DeWine said Tuesday. Ohio borrowed $3.4 billion from the federal government during the Great Recession, and repaid the money in 2016 with $257.7 million in interest.
Before the coronavirus crisis, Ohio’s previous high of 49,321 jobless claims in a single week came during the reporting period ending July 25, 1982. During the Great Recession, jobless claims peaked at 40,829 for the week ending Jan. 10, 2009.
The quickest way to file for benefits is through the ODJFS website. Anyone who is eligible for traditional benefits can apply here, while PUA claimants can apply here. You can also apply by phone by calling toll-free 1-877-644-6562 or TTY 1-614-387-8408. The ODJFS has extended its hours to Monday through Friday, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m; Saturday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; and Sunday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Read more about unemployment benefits on cleveland.com:
Ohio’s unemployment rate nearly triples to 16.8% in April
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June 18, 2020 at 08:25PM
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Continued unemployment claims have declined in Ohio since peaking amid coronavirus shutdowns, state says - cleveland.com
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