Drew Dixon
Wild fluctuations in first-time unemployment claims continued in Florida for the week ending July 26 with a sharp drop in new filings.
Last week saw a 22% decrease in the number of initial jobless claims in the state. There were 4,928 new filings, down 1,403 filings from the week ending July 19 when there were 6,331 new claims, according to U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) data.
It’s one of the sharpest drops in new jobless claims and the lowest total number of initial claims since January when the job market was coming out of the holiday stretch and businesses were robustly employing workers. The latest figures are also an indicator of a Florida Summer that has seen unpredictable unemployment filings.
New filings climb to more than 8,000 in early June, the highest of the year. Claims started to drop for some weeks, while rising again in others. In all, there’s been no consistent trend in new unemployment for the past two months.
Now, it’s the second week in a row new claims have dropped.
Florida’s latest unemployment report tracks with national data, which saw a more modest 10.6% drop in new claims, to 193,119, a reduction of 22,904 filings from the week prior.
DOL economists had expected a larger decrease, but not by much. Analysts had projected a drop of 24,075 new claims which would have amounted to an 11.1% decline.
National unemployment filings for the most recent week recorded was also down year-over-year, with 216,643 claims during the same week last year.
Florida’s general unemployment rate was 3.7% in June. That rate has remained flat for three straight months, according to FloridaCommerce. It’s also lower than the national jobless rate of 4.1%. Florida has had a lower unemployment rate than the nation for 56 consecutive months.
