Kriss Sjoblom

In Washington 47,792 filed initial claims for unemployment insurance last week

This morning the state Employment Security Department (ESD) gave its weekly report on unemployment insurance claims. A note of caution about initial claims numbers: In May, Washington’s unemployment insurance system was hit by a rash of fraudulent claims (press release here). ESD has estimated that the value paid out for fraudulent claims is in the […]

Nationwide, 1,427,000 filed for unemployment insurance last week

The U.S. Department of Labor issued its weekly report on initial claims for unemployment insurance this morning. Nationwide, the number of seasonally adjusted claims was 1,427,000 last week. This is 55,000 less than the (upwardly revised) number of claims for the previous week, 1,482,000. The 4-week moving average of seasonally adjusted claims was 1,503,750, down […]

In Washington 44,469 filed initial claims for unemployment insurance last week

This morning the state Employment Security Department (ESD) gave its weekly report on unemployment insurance claims. A note of caution about initial claims numbers: In May, Washington’s unemployment insurance system was hit by a rash of fraudulent claims (press release here). As a result, the unemployment insurance claims data released weekly by ESD have overstated […]

Nationwide, 1,480,000 filed for unemployment insurance last week

The U.S. Department of Labor issued its weekly report on initial claims for unemployment insurance this morning. Nationwide, the number of seasonally adjusted claims was 1,480,000 last week. This is 60,000 less than the (upwardly revised) number of claims for the previous week, 1,540,000. The 4-week moving average of seasonally adjusted claims was 1,620,750, down […]

Initial claims by sector

Here are four charts presenting initial claims for unemployment insurance reported by Washington state’s Employment Security Department (ESD) by sector for the period from March 1 to June 13. A note of caution about initial claims numbers: In May, Washington’s unemployment insurance system was hit by a rash of fraudulent claims (press release here). As […]

In Washington 46,024 filed initial claims for unemployment insurance last week

This morning the state Employment Security Department (ESD) gave its weekly report on unemployment insurance claims. A note of caution about initial claims numbers: In May, Washington’s unemployment insurance system was hit by a rash of fraudulent claims (press release here). As a result, the unemployment insurance claims data released weekly by ESD have overstated […]

Nationwide, 1,508,000 filed for unemployment insurance last week

The U.S. Department of Labor issued its weekly report on initial claims for unemployment insurance this morning. Nationwide, the number of seasonally adjusted claims was 1,508,000 last week. This is 58,000 less than the (upwardly revised) number of claims for the previous week, 1,566,000. The 4-week moving average of seasonally adjusted claims was 1,733,500, down […]

Monthly state employment report

The state Employment Security Department released its Monthly Employment Report for June today. According to preliminary estimates from the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the state gained 52,500 jobs, net, seasonally adjusted (SA), from April to May. This estimate is based on BLS’s monthly survey of employers, which counts as employed all persons who […]

State revenue forecast update

At its quarterly meeting today, the state Economic and Revenue Forecast Council (ERFC) updated its forecast of state revenues. This is the first official forecast to incorporate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. In recent years, budget reports from legislative fiscal committees have typically rolled up three accounts: the general fund–state, the education legacy trust […]

June report on state tax collections

The state’s Economic and Revenue Forecast Council (ERFC) released its June report on state general fund revenue collections today. This is the second collections report to show the effect of COVID-19 on state revenues. For the sales tax, the use tax, the business and occupation tax, the public utility tax, the tobacco products tax, and […]