Va. initial jobless claims rise slightly

Virginia’s new unemployment claims rose slightly last week, while continued jobless claims declined, the Virginia Employment Commission reported Thursday.

For the filing week ending June 12, 7,849 people filed initial claims, an increase of 639 from the previous week. Continued claims totaled 44,793 last week, down 5,468 claims from the previous week.

This time a year ago, during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic, 27,186 people filed new unemployment claims, 71.1% more than last week, while 386,893 people filed continued claims, 88% more than last week. People receiving unemployment benefits through the VEC must file weekly unemployment claims in order to continue receiving benefits.

More than half of the claimants who filed for benefits last week (and the prior four weeks) reported being in these industries: accommodations/food service; administrative and waste services; retail trade; and health care and social assistance.

The regions of the state that have been most impacted continue to be Northern Virginia, Richmond and Hampton Roads. 

Nationwide, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims last week was 412,000, an increase of 37,000 from the previous week’s revised level, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. There were 1,457,102 initial claims during the same week last year.