Statewide Iowa — The number of initial jobless claims in Iowa, filed between November 1st and November 7th was 5,576, an increase of 967, according to the latest figures released by Iowa Workforce Development.
The agency says there were 5,036 initial claims by individuals who work and live in Iowa, and 540 claims by individuals who work in Iowa and live in another state. The number of continuing weekly unemployment claims was 35,660, a decrease of 1,322 from the previous week.
November through February are traditionally the months we see the most unemployment claims, driven by increased claims in construction, agriculture, landscaping and manufacturing due to seasonal layoffs. For the week ending Nov. 7, 2020, nearly 45% of claimants indicated their claims were not COVID-19 related.
For the week ending Nov. 7, 2020, unemployment insurance benefit payments totaled $10,139,790.87. The following industries had the most claims: Manufacturing (1,005) Industry Not Available – Self-employed, Independent Contractors, etc (743) Construction (634) Health Care & Social Assistance (629) Retail Trade (365) A total of $1,450,800 in Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation (FPUC) benefits was paid, which were retroactive payments as the program ended July 25, 2020.
