Jobless claims rise for a second straight week amid Delta spread and Hurricane Ida hit
CBSN
The number of Americans applying for weekly unemployment aid rose for a second straight week to 351,000, a sign the job market is facing headwinds as the U.S. grapples with a surge in COVID-19 cases.
A report Thursday from the Department of Labor showed that jobless claims rose by 16,000 from the previous week. As the job market has strengthened, unemployment aid applications, which generally track layoffs, have tumbled since topping 900,000 early this year, reflecting the economy's reopening after the pandemic recession.
Still, jobless claims remain elevated. Before the pandemic tore through the economy in March 2020, some 220,000 people applied for aid each week. In other words, weekly claims remain about 60% higher than before the pandemic.
