Iowa sees more than 53,000 total unemployment claims week of Feb. 21

By: John Steppe Mar. 4, 2021 9:56 am Updated: Mar. 4, 2021 11:26 am

Iowa registered more than 50,000 total unemployment claims the week of Feb. 21 for the ninth consecutive week, according to data released Thursday by the Iowa Workforce Development.

New claims dropped from 5,192 to 4,452 while continuing claims rose from 48,758 to 49,140.

About 37.8 percent of claims were related to coronavirus, according to IWD. The agency typically sees higher unemployment numbers between November and February due to seasonal layoffs.

Manufacturing was the largest source of claims with 838, followed by self-employed and independent contractors with 685, construction with 554, retail trade with 338, and health care and social assistance with 323.

The claims resulted in $39.9 million in Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation, $24.1 million in Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation, $17.2 million in standard unemployment benefits and $3.8 million in Pandemic Unemployment Assistance.

These unemployment numbers are preliminary and are yet to be adjusted by the U.S. Department of Labor. They also only include people actively seeking work and therefore do not necessarily give a complete picture of how many people are out of work.

Comments: (319) 398-8394; john.steppe@thegazette.com

A 'now hiring' sign is posted on the patio of the former Louie's Wine Dive in the Iowa River Landing in Coralville in September. (Rebecca F. Miller/The Gazette)