Georgia unemployment claims surge nearly 5,000% since start of pandemic, data shows
A recent report shows just how hard Georgia’s workforce has been hit by the coronavirus.
The Peach State, which saw nearly 313,000 unemployment insurance initial claims in March, ranks No. 1 in the nation for the largest increase in unemployment since the start of the pandemic, according to an analysis by WalletHub released Thursday.
The latest available data, reported the week of April 20, also puts Georgia’s workforce as the second most-impacted by the COVID-19 crisis, behind Florida.
“Consequently, many businesses have furloughed or laid off employees, and 30.3 million Americans have found themselves temporarily or permanently out of a job since the week of March 16,” according to the WalletHub report. “While Americans have started to receive their government stimulus payments, those who are jobless will likely still struggle.”
Like much of the U.S., Georgia’s economy has slowed to a crawl due to the virus that, as of Friday morning, has infected nearly 27,000 and resulted in 1,138 deaths statewide. Gov. Brian Kemp has taken steps to jumpstart the economy by allowing certain businesses, including barbershops and bowling alleys, to reopen after a month-long lockdown.
However, a full reopening of the economy is still likely a ways away as Georgians struggle to find work amid the pandemic, data shows.
Since the onset of the outbreak, Georgia has reported a 4,999% increase in unemployment claims between March 16 and April 20,, according to WalletHub. The surge in the number of jobless claims was even higher when comparing the weeks of April 20, 2020 and April 22, 2019 — a staggering 5,842% hike.
To reach its findings, WalletHub “compared the 50 states and the District of Columbia based on increases in unemployment insurance initial claims for several key weeks,” according to its report. It then used that data, pulled from the U.S Department of Labor, to rank each state based on three metrics: increase in the number of jobless claims in 2020, the increase in number of jobless claims in 2020 vs. 2019, and the increase in the number of jobless claims since the start of the coronavirus crisis vs. this same time last year.
The numbers are also reflective of current labor force data from the Georgia Department of Labor, which reported a nearly 1,300% increase in jobless claims over the last month. Last week alone, the department said it had processed 266,565 claims — about 19,000 more than the week before, according to a news release.
Moreover, the department said it has already issued more unemployment insurance payments during the pandemic than in the prior four years combined.
“Our employees are managing unprecedented numbers of claims and are getting people paid,” Georgia Labor Commissioner Mark Butler, said in a press release. “To say that we have issued more payments in the past six weeks than in the past four years combined is quite an accomplishment.”
At the county level, Fulton County topped the list with 44,097 unemployment insurance initial claims followed by Gwinnett County, which saw 29,768 claims in March. DeKalb, Cobb and Chatham were also among the hardest hit counties in regard to unemployment, filing 27,027, 26,415 and 14,925 jobless claims, respectively, according to the Georgia Department of Labor.
Nationally, the labor forces in some states have fared better than others during the pandemic. New Hampshire ranked second to Georgia for the largest increase in joblessness since the outbreak began, followed by Louisiana, Kentucky and Florida, data collected by WalletHub showed.
Other states with economies most impacted by COVID-19 include North Carolina, Virginia, Michigan, South Dakota and Indiana, according to the report.