COLORADO, USA — The Colorado Department of Labor and Employment (CDLE) reported that regular initial unemployment claims in the state rose above 6,000.
CLDE reported 6,242 regular unemployment insurance (UI) claims and 2,532 Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) claims were filed the week ending Oct. 10.
CDLE also reported that $46.2 million in regular unemployment benefits were paid out the same week.
> Video above: CDLE weekly call from Oct. 8.
For the week ending Oct. 3, CLDE said a combined total of 232,553 continued claims were filed including 123,629 UI claims, 64,741 PUA claims and 44,183 Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation (PEUC) claims.
Since mid-March, when the coronavirus pandemic was declared, 575,599 regular UI claims have been filed. Including PUA, a total of 742,894 claims have been filed, according to CDLE.
CDLE also reported that it has paid out $367 million from the Lost Wages Assistance (LWA) program through the week ending Oct. 10.
LWA is a federally-funded program that provides an extra $300 weekly to residents who are eligible for at least $100 weekly in regular UI benefits.
All claimants who were eligible for at least $100 weekly in regular UI benefits between July 26 and Sep. 5 are eligible to receive LWA benefits, but must certify by Saturday, Oct. 24.
Claimants can certify by phone or through CDLE's website.
CDLE reported on Oct. 8 that an estimated 70,000 to 80,000 residents eligible to receive LWA benefits had not certified.
Benefits paid since March 29, according to CDLE:
- Regular UI: $2.05 Billion
- PUA (gig workers/self-employed): $677.7 Million
- Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation($600 weekly to eligible claimants): $2.48 Billion
- PEUC (extends unemployment benefits by up to 13 weeks): $110.2 Million
- State Extended Benefits (extends unemployment benefits an additional 13 weeks): $850,000
- LWA ($300 weekly to eligible claimants): $367.1 Million
- Total: $5.69 Billion
Top 10 industries with highest initial claims for week ending September 26th, according to CDLE:
- Accommodation and Food Services: 418 (12.7% of claims that week)
- Retail Trade: 394 (12.0%)
- Healthcare and Social Assistance: 392 (11.9%)
- Construction: 355 (10.8%)
- Administrative and Support and Waste Management and Remediation Services: 339 (10.3%)
- Professional and Technical Services: 217 (6.6%)
- Manufacturing: 177 (5.4%)
- Transportation and Warehousing: 136 (4.1%)
- Wholesale Trade: 135 (4.1%)
- Other Services: 128 (3.9%)
CDLE said it will not hold its weekly update call on Thursday. The next call is scheduled for 10 a.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 20.
The number of Americans seeking unemployment benefits rose last week by the most in two months, to 898,000, a historically high number and evidence that layoffs remain a hindrance to the economy’s recovery from the pandemic recession.
Thursday’s report from the Labor Department coincides with other recent data that have signaled a slowdown in hiring. The economy is still roughly 10.7 million jobs short of recovering all the 22 million jobs that were lost when the pandemic struck in early spring.
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