The Labor Department released its weekly unemployment statistics on Thursday. It showed that another 376,000 workers filed for unemployment benefits in the week ending on June 5th. That was the lowest number since before the pandemic hit, but just barely below last week's numbers. We still have a way to go before returning to normal. Sadly, vaccinations are not being done at the rate President Biden had hoped for, and the economy will not return to normal until herd immunity is reached.
Here is the official statement from the Labor Department:
In the week ending June 5, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 376,000, a decrease of 9,000 from the previous week's unrevised level of 385,000. This is the lowest level for initial claims since March 14, 2020 when it was 256,000. The 4-week moving average was 402,500, a decrease of 25,500 from the previous week's unrevised average of 428,000. This is the lowest level for this average since March 14, 2020 when it was 225,500.