SALT LAKE CITY — The number of new people seeking unemployment benefits in Utah rose 8% last week, with 3,403 people filing first-time claims for the week of March 14 through March 20 compared to 3,143 a week earlier.
The Utah Department of Workforce Services reported Thursday there were 29,975 continued claims filed during the latest seven-day period. A year ago, the office saw 8,856 such claims for the week.
“The federal unemployment stimulus benefits made available through the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 have all been successfully implemented in the state of Utah,” said state Unemployment Insurance Division Director Kevin Burt. “While these benefits are critical to those who find themselves unemployed through no fault of their own, active job search will continue to be a requirement to receive them and Utah’s strong economy offers many employment opportunities.”
The number of people who have not requested a benefit for two consecutive weeks as of March 13 registered at 2,330, compared to a total of 2,001 who met the same criteria during the prior week.
While this week’s data saw traditional benefits requests increase, other benefits such as Pandemic Unemployment Assistance and extended benefits claims fell significantly. Burt said when looking at the data, it is often better to look at more than a week, as doing so tends to “paint a more accurate picture.”
He noted that the average weekly new claims for January registered at 3,326, with the February average decreasing to 2,734 weekly claims. The March average claims thus far have tallied 2,478 weekly filings — which details a steady decline so far in 2021.
He added that the past several weeks have shown a “very promising” trend regarding continued claims volumes.
“We have seen an overall decrease in continued claims for seven consecutive weeks — down 14% for that time period,” he said. “This is even with the extended availability and value of the unemployment benefit with recent congressional actions. This is a promising sign that people are returning to work.”
Regarding the expansion of the state’s vaccine rollout to include lower age groups, he reiterated continued diligence for Utahns who find themselves in a place where they feel safe to reenter the state’s improving job market.
“Our message continues to be the same. Those that are eligible for these critical benefits will certainly receive them to get the much-needed support (they provide),” Burt said. “However, they are temporary. An active job search is a requirement of the program. There are jobs in Utah and stability will only be found in employment.”
Meanwhile, the number of people seeking unemployment benefits fell sharply last week to 684,000, the fewest since the pandemic erupted a year ago and a sign that the economy is improving.
An Associated Press report Thursday indicated data from the Labor Department showed that jobless claims fell from 781,000 the week before. It is the first time that weekly applications for jobless aid have fallen below 700,000 since mid-March of last year. Before the pandemic tore through the economy, applications had never topped that level.
The number of people seeking benefits under a federal program for self-employed and contract workers also dropped, to 241,000, from 284,000 a week earlier. All told, the number of applicants fell below 1 million for the first time since the pandemic.
Economists are growing more optimistic that the pace of layoffs, which has been chronically high for a full year, is finally easing.
”While the level of claims remains elevated,” said Nancy Vanden Houten, an economist at Oxford Economics, “we expect they will continue to recede as the recovery gains momentum.”
Still, a total of 18.9 million people are continuing to collect jobless benefits, up from 18.2 million in the previous week. Roughly one-third of those recipients are in extended federal aid programs, which means they’ve been unemployed for at least six months.
Their prolonged joblessness could prove to be a long-term hindrance: Typically, many people who have been unemployed for extended periods struggle to find work even as the economy regains its health.
The economy has been showing signs of emerging from the pandemic crisis with renewed vigor, with spending picking up, manufacturing strengthening and employers adding workers. Hiring increased in February with 379,000 added jobs — more than double January’s total.
The economy expanded at a 4.3% annual rate in the final three months of last year, according to government estimates, slightly faster than its previous estimate. That pace is widely expected to accelerate in the coming months, fueled by substantial government rescue aid.