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Tenn. initial jobless claims still rising, but continuing claims are falling

TN.GOV/WORKFORCE

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (Mike Osborne)  --  The Tennessee Department of Labor has again reported a small increase in the number of workers filing initial unemployment claims.

State officials say 22,256 residents reported being furloughed or laid off in the past week. That’s a jump of more than 1100 new jobless applicants over the previous week.

The number of employees filing initial jobless claims fell steadily between April 11 and June 13, but began rising again slowly two weeks ago.

On the plus side, the number of Tennesseans continuing to draw down jobless benefits each week continues to fall, indicating at least some employees are returning to work. During the week ending June 27, some 262,000 residents collected unemployment checks.

This past week the State of Tennessee distributed more than $259 million in jobless benefits to unemployed residents.

The Associated Press reports U.S. employers added a substantial 4.8 million jobs in June. The nationwide unemployment rate fell to 11.1%, as the job market improved for a second straight month. The nation has now recovered roughly one-third of the 22 million jobs it lost to the pandemic recession.

Tennessee has not yet reported its jobless rate for June. The state Department of Labor reported the May unemployment figure at 11.3 percent, the second highest reading Tennessee has ever recorded.

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