New weekly unemployment claims in state drop to 8,927

An additional 8,927 people filed for traditional unemployment benefits in the week ending April 10, the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment said Thursday, a drop of 378 from the week before.

A total of 2,132 people filed for the reinstated Pandemic Unemployment Assistance program during the week, marking a decrease of 48 new applicants. Figures for that specific aid over the past several weeks are not comparable to numbers from before February due to changes in guidance from the U.S. Labor Department directing states to count only new claims or those who were rehired and laid off or furloughed again.

A total of 218,508 continued claims were filed for some type of state or federally-funded unemployment program in the week of April 3, marking a decrease of 42,648. The department attributed that steep drop to the recent implementation of a new identity verification requirement meant to ward off fraudulent claims that have plagued state unemployment systems throughout the pandemic.

Nationwide, the U.S. Labor Department said 576,000 Americans filed for unemployment aid, amounting to a drop of 193,000 from the week prior’s adjusted figure and the lowest level on record in the past 12 months.