N.C. has modest increase in benefits claims N.C. has modest increase in unemployment insurance claims, opposite of national trends

North Carolina had a modest uptick in initial unemployment-insurance claims last week, the first increase since two key federal pandemic relief programs expired Sept. 4.

With no COVID-19 pandemic UI programs available currently for North Carolinians, the U.S. Labor Department reported Thursday the state had 4,236 new regular state claims for the week that ended Oct 9.

There were a revised 3,687 claims for the week that ended Oct. 2, along with 3,557 for the week that ended Sept. 25 and 7,110 claims for the week that ended Sept. 18.

The state was 20th in the nation in the number of unemployment filings, down one spot from last week.

North Carolinians determined currently to be eligible for regular state UI benefits can draw up to 13 weeks - the lowest level offered by any state - that provide a maximum weekly benefit of $350, although the average claimant receives about $235.

By comparison, the state's highest weekly total for claims related to the pandemic was 172,745 for the week that ended March 28, 2020.

As of Sept. 5, nearly 178,000 jobless North Carolinians no longer had $300 in weekly federal benefits to rely on to pay their bills or feed their household.

U.S. Labor listed 29,274 North Carolinians drawing regular state benefits as of Oct. 2.

Once the 13 regular state benefit weeks run out, N.C. claimants have to wait another 39 weeks before they can file again.

The $300 per week extended federal UI payments kept some potential employees on the sidelines since they made more from not working than in a minimum- to low-wage job.

Economists say the September state and county-level jobless reports should provide insight into whether the expiration of the two federal programs will produce an increase in hiring and individuals re-entering the workforce.

"One thing to remember is that although all of the enhanced federal benefits expired, that expiration is for benefit weeks starting after the week ending on Sept. 4," said John Quinterno, principal with South by North Strategies Ltd., a Chapel Hill research company specializing in economic and social policy.

"People with eligible claims for prior weeks still are eligible for benefits for those weeks.

"That might include people who lost a job at the very end of August, or those with prior claims that are pending or under administrative review for some reason," Quinterno said.

The details

The extended federal programs included: pandemic emergency unemployment compensation (PEUC); pandemic unemployment assistance (PUA); federal pandemic unemployment compensation (FPUC); and mixed earners unemployment compensation (MEUC).

As of Sept. 7, North Carolina had received $13.27 billion, with regular state benefits of $2.03 billion, while federal and state extended benefits are at $11.24 billion.

By far the biggest factor in UI benefit payments has been the FPUC program at $7.31 billion. That represents about 55% of all UI benefit payments.

Also as of Sept. 7, there have been 1.54 million individual claims filed in North Carolina during the pandemic, with DES determining that just more than 1 million claimants have been eligible for state or federal UI benefits.

Federal guidelines require a separate application for each unemployment program.

Overall, there had been at least 3.83 million state and federal claims filed as of Sept. 7.

Nationally

National UI claims dropped by 36,000 to 293,000 for the week that ended Oct. 9.

The Oct. 9 counts represents the lowest weekly claims count for the pandemic.

There were 3.65 million individuals nationwide with an active claim as of Sept. 25, down down 12% from Sept. 18 and down 67.5% from 11.25 million as of Sept. 4.

About 2.66 million workers drew state benefits and 989,538 received federal benefits, mostly extended benefits that have ended for North Carolinians.

Mark Hamrick, chief economist analyst for Bankrate.com, said Thursday that "we're seeing fresh and welcome signs of improvement in the job market. New jobless claims have dropped more than expected."

"At a time when a record number of workers are quitting their jobs, we're reminded that some businesses are still failing as the pandemic takes its toll, resulting in unexpected job loss.

"With so many jobs available and opportunities to work remote at least some of the time, the good news is that workers stand a reasonable chance of improving their employment situation, including better pay and working conditions," Hamrick said. "Clearly, that's what many want."

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