New Hampshire's New Unemployment Claims Holding Steady

CONCORD, NH — New unemployment insurance filings in the state have been holding steady for more than two months at between 5,163 and 6,431 weekly, according to data from the state and federal government.

For the week ending July 4, new unemployment claims rose slightly to 5,285 compared to 5,163 on June 27 — the lowest week of filings since the first week of March in New Hampshire. Before Thursday's announcement, New Hampshire had been on a steady decline in filings.

Nationally, 1.3 million people filed for unemployment claims.

At post time, New Hampshire Employment Security had not released its weekly unemployment COVID-19 update. But on July 2, state officials said when compared to other New England states, New Hampshire had the largest percentage drop of claims. About 86,000 people are continuing to collect unemployment — a drop of more than 6,300 from the previous week.

More than 160,000 people made claims in New Hampshire between March 15 and June 20.

The hardest hit sectors in the state continue to be food services and drinking places, ambulatory health care services, educational services, and hospitals.

Manchester, Nashua, Concord, Derry, and Rochester continue to post the most claims of unemployment, mostly due to their population sizes.

The state's self-employed workforce makes up 17 percent of unemployment claims, employment security said.

The state's unemployment rate for May was 14.5 percent. No data for June has been released yet.

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