New unemplyment claims fall by 53,000

The number of new claims for unemployment benefits fell by 53,000 for the week ending April 11, the Labor Department reported Thursday, with 610,000 people seeking benefits.

Over 6 million people were on the unemployment rolls for the prior week, an weekly increase of 172,000, the government's estimates show.

According to the Labor Department, the highest insured unemployment rates in the week ending March 28 were in Michigan (8.0 percent), Oregon (7.9), Rhode Island (7.1), Idaho (7.0), Wisconsin (7.0), Pennsylvania (6.7), Nevada (6.2), Alaska (6.0), Montana (6.0), and Vermont (5.9).

Number of new unemployment claims still high but down a bit

The Labor Department reports that 654,000 new claims for unemployment benefits were filed in the week ending April 4, showing a drop of 20,000 claims from the prior weeks estimate of 674,000.

The same week one year ago, the number of new claims was only 358,000.

About 5.84 million people were on the unemployment rolls for the week ending March 28, the Labor Department's numbers show. That's 95,000 more than the week before.

Watching the economy

The jobless numbers were bad last week, but wait -- there's more economic news to digest this week. Here's how you can watch out for signs of life in the economy yourself. The stock markets are closed Friday for Good Friday observances.

Company earnings
On Tuesday, the earnings reports for the first quarter kick off with Alcoa, the aluminum giant. Most analysts don't expect any great news; instead it could be a quick read on whether companies have hit bottom and can start clawing back. Washington Post

Unemployment
The weekly jobless claims are put out Thursday by the U.S. Labor Department and the picture may not be pretty, as company layoffs continue.
If you are worried about losing your job, our Money blog has some tips on work life and the downturn.

Store sales
Also on Thursday, retailers will release numbers that will show whether consumers are opening their wallets. They're predicting basically flat sales, which could be good news. WSJ

Unemployment rate hits 8.5% in March

The job market continued to struggle in March with 694,000 people joining the ranks of the unemployed, according to new numbers from the Labor Department.

The government's survey found a total of 13.2 million people out of work in March, bringing the unemployment rate up to 8.5 percent.

That's the highest unemployment level since November of 1983.

Since the current recession began in December 2007, 5.1 million jobs have been lost, the Labor Department reported, and nearly two-thirds of those jobs have been cut in the last five months.

New claims for unemployment hit highest level since 1982

The number of people filing initial claims for unemployment benefits jumped to 669,000 in the week ending March 28, according to new estimates from the Labor Department.

That's 12,000 claims more the week before, making it the highest level since October 1982.

Nearly 5.73 million Americans were already on the unemployment rolls in the week ending March 21, according to the Labor Department estimates.

Not so funny: 742,000 jobs gone in March

Private companies axed another 742,000 jobs between February and March, according to the ADP National Employment Report.

According to ADP's estimates, the goods-producing sector lost 327,000 jobs, the 27th consecutive month with a loss.

Construction employment dropped by 118,000, binging the total number of construction jobs lost since January 2007 to 1,135,000.

The government's employment numbers are expected in two days when the Labor Department reports its estimate for nonfarm payrolls.

Obama goes online to talk about the economy

President Barack Obama hosted an online town hall meeting today from the White House.

The president answered 12 questions in a little more than an hour--six were from the web site and six were from the audience. About 3.5 million people voted on which questions should be asked, the president said.

The White House said that 104,081 questions were submitted by 92,933 people and that about 67,000 people watched on WhiteHouse.gov, in addition to those who watched on television. 

The general topic was the struggling economy, but the questions ranged from the job market to small business loans to what the government is doing about the auto industry.

The president did answer one question which wasn't officially asked, but was one of the most popular topics in the voting on WhiteHouse.gov.

"I have to say that there was one question that was voted on that ranked fairly high and that was whether legalizing marijuana would improve the economy and job creation," Obama said with a chuckle. "And I don't know what this says about the online audience, but I just want--I don't want people to think that--this was a fairly popular question; we want to make sure that it was answered. The answer is, no, I don't think that is a good strategy ... to grow our economy."

New unemployment claims up again

Initial claims for unemployment insurance were up again for the week ending March 21, with an estimated 652,000 people seeking benefits, according to new numbers released by the Department of Labor. 

That's an 8,000 claim increase from the week before.

The government's numbers show that 5,560,000 people were collecting unemployment insurance for the week ending March 14.

Labor Department details COBRA changes in stimulus bill

As layoffs continue across the country, sky-high health care costs are a concern for anyone who has lost, or is danger of losing, their job.

COBRA, the provision which allows you to keep paying for your health insurance at your employer's rate if you lose your job, got bulked up in the stimulus bill, and today the Labor Department explained some of the changes.

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act allows people who lost their jobs between September 1, 2008 through December 31, 2009 to pay reduced premiums if they elect COBRA, according to the Labor Department.

Eligible individuals pay only 35 percent of the full COBRA premiums under their plans for up to nine months, the department said.

"These programs are vitally important to the economic well-being of people who lost their jobs," Labor Secretary Hilda Solis said in a statement.

"The ARRA provides a 65 percent tax subsidy for the cost of health benefits, making them more affordable for the unemployed and their families. Millions of individuals, including those who previously declined employer-provided coverage under COBRA, will be eligible to receive a subsidy on their premiums for up to nine months."

For an explanation of what COBRA is and how it works, check the CR Health Blog's Buzzword: COBRA.

For details about the changes coming out of the stimulus package, check the Labor Department's COBRA page and question and answer page.

Unemployment claims fall, but still near highs

In the week ending March 14, there were 646,000 initial claims for unemployment, the Department of Labor announced today.

That's 12,000 less new jobless claims than the week before--a decrease of 1.2 percent--but 271,000 more than a year before, according to the seasonally adjusted numbers from the Labor Department.

About 5.5 million people were collecting unemployment benefits for the week ending March 7. Since October, when the fiscal year started, an average of 4.577 million people have been collecting unemployment insurance, according to the government's numbers.