The number of initial unemployment claims filed during the Jan. 9 filing week rose to its highest levels since July, according to figures released today by the Virginia Employment Commission.
For the filing week ending Jan. 9, the figure for seasonally unadjusted initial claims in Virginia was 28,227. The latest claims figure was an increase of 8,697 claimants from the previous week, which could in part reflect seasonal spikes in layoffs often seen after the holidays.
For the most recent filing week, continued weeks claimed totaled 63,687, which was a 0.2 percent increase from the previous week, but 40,110 higher than the 23,577 continued claims from the comparable week last year.
Over half of claims were in the accommodation/food service, health care, administrative and waste services, and retail trade industries.
The continued claims total is mainly comprised of those recent initial claimants who continued to file for unemployment insurance benefits during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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