Florida’s weekly unemployment claims surge as COVID-19 continues to spread
As more COVID-19 cases swept across Florida, a surge of 129,408 people filed their first unemployment claims during the week ended July 11, nearly doubling the previous week’s filings.
The figure represented an increase of 62,467, an eruption that easily outstripped week-to-week claims increases by any other state. The boost broke a short string of declines as people were being called back to work.
Nationally, another 1.3 million people filed claims, a slight decline of 10,000, the U.S. Department of Labor reported Thursday.
“After an encouraging initial start to the recovery, the dramatic re-emergence of COVID-19 risks putting the economy back on its heels,” said Mark Hamrick, senior economic analyst at Bankrate. “With the paramount aim of saving lives, renewed restrictions placed on businesses also take a renewed toll taken on the economy. Ultimately, the only treatment for what ails the economy is also what’s needed to overcome the virus. That’s why the ongoing promising quest for safe and effective vaccines is so critically important.”
Nationwide, nearly 33 million people were collecting unemployment benefits as of June 20, according to the Labor Department. The figure stood at 2 million people in February, before the pandemic took hold.
Businesses — particularly in South Florida’s leisure and hospitality industry — have been extending furloughs and layoffs as managements concluded they could not return to full operations so long as the coronavirus continues to spread aggressively around the state.
On Friday, the state will announce its unemployment rate for June. The figure for May was 14.5%.
According to the state Department of Economic Opportunity, more than $10.1 billion in benefits has been paid to more than 1.7 million people as of Tuesday. More than $7 billion came from the federal government through a program that pays $600 in benefits a week and is set to expire next week.
Early Thursday, U.S. Rep. Donna Shalala and State Sen. Jose Javier Rodriguez, both Democrats from Miami, called on the U.S. Senate to pass a bill that would continue federal payouts under a tiered system pegged to state unemployment rates.
Although the House passed a $3 trillion relief act to continue the $600 payments, Senate Republicans have opposed an extension, with many saying that it would be a disincentive for the unemployed to seek a new job.
By the lawmakers’ estimation, hundreds of thousands of unemployed Florida workers still have not received any money since filing for unemployment after they lost their jobs this past spring due to the pandemic. According to the DEO’s own figures, 256,291 people were waiting as of Tuesday for the agency to declare them eligible for benefits.
Many lawmakers are concerned that unemployed workers will be unable to pay rent and other crucial living expenses unless the federal payments continue.
According to a survey by Bankrate, the personal finance website, more than one in three or 36% American adults say they’ve delayed committing to at least one major financial milestone such as finding a new job or making a major new purchase such as a car or home as a direct result of the pandemic. Of the people in that group, the majority postponed action for six months or more.
In addition, younger people and those whose financial situations are worse off because of the pandemic were more likely to delay their plans.
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