Va. saw slight uptick in jobless claims last week

More than 62K Virginians remain unemployed

Published February 18, 2021 by Sydney Lake

Initial jobless claims filed last week rose 4.9% from the previous week, according to figures released Thursday by the Virginia Employment Commission, while continued claims slightly dropped.

During the week ending Feb. 13, 14,901 Virginians filed initial unemployment claims, compared to 14,203 from the week prior. 

Last week, 62,624 Virginians remained unemployed; that represents 40,143 more claims filed than the same period in 2020. People receiving unemployment benefits through the VEC must file weekly unemployment claims in order to continue receiving benefits. 

“Elevated levels this winter may have, in part, reflected reapplications for benefits following the government’s renewal of supplemental benefits until March 14 as part of the latest stimulus package,” according to the VEC.

More than half of the claimants who filed for benefits last week (and the prior two weeks) reported being in the accommodation/food service, administrative and waste services, retail trade and health care and social assistance industries, according to the VEC.

The regions of the state that have been most impacted continue to be Northern Virginia, Richmond and Hampton Roads. 

Below are the top 10 localities, listed by number of initial unemployment claims, for the week ending Feb. 13:

• Richmond, 658
• Virginia Beach, 603
• Norfolk, 581
• Fairfax County, 561
• Prince William County, 398
• Newport News, 355
• Alexandria, 347
• Chesapeake, 321
• Portsmouth, 308
• Chesterfield County, 285

Nationwide, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims last week was 861,000, an increase of 13,000 from the previous week’s revised level, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. There were 209,336 initial claims during the same week last year.

Subscribe to Virginia Business.

Get our daily e-newsletter.