Wisconsin jobless claims drop 20 percent from prior week, still more than 10 times higher than before economic shutdown

(The Center Square) – While state and national officials are talking about the possibilities of reopening the economy once the coronavirus abates, the impact of the shutdown of all but essential businesses continues to be reflected in the latest unemployment data.

For the fifth week in a row, new claims for unemployment insurance were elevated well above normal levels in Wisconsin, coming in at 55,886 for the week ending April 18, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. That was a decrease of 14,114 from the previous week’s 70,000, but still well above the numbers seen before the COVID-10 pandemic hit the United States.

National claims also continued to be well above historical norms, with 4.4 million claims filed across the United States. California led the nation with 533,568 claims, and West Virginia had the biggest jump in claims from the prior week with a 209 percent increase.

"The advance seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate was 11.0 percent for the week ending April 11, an increase of 2.8 percentage points from the previous week's unrevised rate," a news release from the Department of Labor stated. "This marks the highest level of the seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate in the history of the seasonally adjusted series."

Another relief package expected to pass in the U.S. House of Representatives on Thursday will provide more funding for small businesses that have been particularly hard-hit by the economic pause. The legislation has already been passed by the U.S. Senate and is expected to quickly be signed into law by President Donald Trump.