Analysis: Delaware initial jobless claims fall by nearly 1,700

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Weekly  initial unemployment claims in Delaware fell by nearly 1,700 from the previous seven-day period.

The Thursday report from the U.S. Department of Labor listed 7,754 initial claims for the week ending April 25 for Delaware.

Those submitting information for Delaware to the U.S. Labor Department did not offer comments on the reasons for the decline in claims.

The advance seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate was 12.4 percent in the nation for the week ending April 18, an increase of 1.5 percentage points from the previous week’s revised rate. This marks the highest level of the seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate in the history of the seasonally adjusted series.

The advance unadjusted insured unemployment rate was 12.2 percent during the week ending April 18, an increase of 1 percent from the prior week.

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Delaware did not rank in the top tier in insured unemployment rates in the week ending April 11. States listed were Michigan (21.8%), Vermont (21.2%), Connecticut (18.5%), Pennsylvania (18.5%), Nevada (16.8%), Rhode Island (16.7%), Washington (16.0%), Alaska (15.6%), New York (14.4%), and West Virginia (14.4%).

While the state has  not formally  released an insured jobless rate, prior to the coronavirus downturn, its jobless rate in early 2020  had been tracking at a rate slightly above the national figure.

Initial claims do not always translate into unemployment payments.

The number of people who are potentially eligible for unemployment has been expanded, but gaining the benefits has not always been easy, due to the volume of calls,  the need to get new software systems in operation and other issues.

State Labor Secretary Cerron Cade said last week the system has been struggling with the volume of callers with questions that cannot be resolved through its online system.

One issue involves management members who have taken big pay cuts in businesses that now have virtually no revenues.

Others who are temporarily furloughed are eligible, but have reported mixed success in gaining claims.

Another category comes from self-employed workers, who are eligible in theory, under federal programs, but have often been rejected or received no answer on their claims in Delaware and elsewhere.

Delaware has a $400 a week jobless benefit that is well below the  figures for most higher-income states. A few states, including neighboring Pennsylvania offer upwards of $600 a week. 

Many Delawareans are eligible for an additional $600 a week in benefits for the next few months.

The combined payments add up to more than the weekly pay for many Delaware workers, who may not be happy if companies call them back at their former pay rate.

In scattered cases, employees in lower-income positions have been upset when their employer received Payroll Protection Program (PPP) grant/loans that continue to pay workers. At times, that means taking a big pay cut when the $600 a week payment is available.

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