The Nebraska Department of Labor announced today that there were 3,189 new regular unemployment claims filed last week, an increase of 21.2 percent over the prior week when 2,630 claims were filed. There were 1,179 new Pandemic Unemployment Assistance claims filed last week compared to 1,150 the prior week, an increase of 2.5 percent. The highest number of new claims filed during the pandemic was 26,539 claims during the week ending April 4.
There were 30,916 continued weeks of regular unemployment claimed last week, a decrease over the prior week, when 37,010 claims were filed. There were 24,478 continued weeks of Pandemic Unemployment Assistance claimed last week, up slightly compared to 24,184 the prior week.
Continued weeks refer to the individual weeks of unemployment claimed after a person applies for benefits. Weekly certifications are required in order to claim continued weeks of unemployment and receive payment. Before the coronavirus pandemic, the highest number of continued weeks was in the second week of 2010 when there were 26,075 continued weeks claimed.
Of the top 50 occupations with the highest number of continued claims, 34 have declined by 30 percent or more since the week ending May 9, corresponding with the loosening of the direct health measures. Forty-six out of the top 50 have declined by 20 percent or more. The top continued claim occupations for the week ending August 8 (the most recent week for which occupation data is available) were 1,534 waiters and waitresses, 1,514 cashiers, and 1,338 customer service representatives.
NDOL paid a total of $12.1 million in benefits last week, including regular, PUA, and Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation (PEUC), which provides an additional 13 week of benefits to individuals who have exhausted their regular benefits. Regular and PUA benefits paid each week can be found here. NDOL has paid over 128,000 individuals during the pandemic.