DES MOINES, Iowa - Ongoing weekly unemployment claims are up in Iowa.
New numbers from Iowa Workforce Development and the U.S. Labor Department show ongoing claims are up 13-percent. Initial claims are down from the week before.
By the numbers, first time weekly jobless claims are down by 217, from 7,855 to 7,638, reflecting a relatively tiny drop of 3 percent.
Ongoing claims increased by 6,286, from 43,165 to 49,451, an increase of 13 percent. The rise in ongoing claims could raise some concern as ongoing claims more closely reflect the actual unemployment rate.
Ongoing claims reached a peak in the early stages of the pandemic of more than 191,000 in late May.
For the most recent week, unemployment insurance benefit payments totaled $15,638,255.25, an increase from $12,894,945.67 the week before.
The following industries had the most claims:
- Construction (2,014)
- Manufacturing (1,397)
- Industry Not Available - Self-employed, Independent Contractors, etc (593)
- Retail Trade (560)
- Administrative, Support, Waste Management, and Remediation Services (529)