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US jobless claims up to 744K as COVID-19 still forces layoffs
The number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits rose last week to 744,000, signaling that many employers are still cutting jobs even as more people are vaccinated against COVID-19, consumers gain confidence and the government distributes aid throughout the economy.
The Labor Department said Thursday that applications increased by 16,000 from 728,000 a week earlier. Jobless claims have declined sharply since the virus slammed into the economy in March of last year. But they remain stubbornly high by historical standards: Before the pandemic erupted, weekly applications typically remained below 220,000 a week.
For the week ending March 27, more than 3.7 million people were receiving traditional state unemployment benefits, the government said. If you include supplemental federal programs that were established last year to help the unemployed endure the health crisis, a total of 18.2 million are receiving some form of jobless aid the week of March 20.
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8:43 a.m. Chronic stress: Your body is trying to tell you something. What you can do.
Think of them as warning signs that something isn’t right.
Maybe you’re not sleeping well or getting more headaches. Or have no appetite and bouts of nausea.
Stress isn’t just a state of mind. It’s something that can create chaos in your body. Poor physical health often can signal poor mental health.
“A lot of times, our body is trying to communicate to us when we’re not in a good spot,” says Vaile Wright, senior director of health care innovation for the American Psychological Association.
The group’s 2020 Stress in America survey found Americans have been severely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic as well as political polarization and racial discrimination.
New Cases & Vaccination Numbers
- Officials reported 3,790 new cases of the virus on Wednesday.
- Since March 12, Illinois’ seven-day average statewide testing positivity rate has ballooned from 2.1% up to 4.1% — its highest point since Jan. 29.
- The state reported 28 more deaths Wednesday, including a Cook County man in his 30s. On average, 18 residents are dying with the virus each day.
- With 9139,724 COVID-19 vaccinations administered Tuesday, about 2.5 million residents have been fully immunized so far.
