Unemployment Claims In New Hampshire Lowest In Months: Data

CONCORD, NH — New unemployment claims in New Hampshire are at their lowest level in nearly seven months and the lowest weekly claims since the coronavirus pandemic and lockdown in mid-March.

The U.S. Department of Labor reported 2,005 Granite State residents filed for new unemployment claims for the week ending Sept. 26 — the lowest one-week total since March 7 when less than 500 claims were filed. The next week, more than 4,000 people filed and between 25,000 and 36,000 during the four weeks after that followed, after the COVID-19 lockdown.

Since mid-July, claims have been between 2,000 and 3,000 per week in New Hampshire.

New Hampshire Employment Security recent reportedly the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for the month of August dropped to 6.5 percent.

Gov. Chris Sununu said aid plus the state's "measured approach," while working "to reopen safely and responsibly," was part of the reason for the turnaround.

"Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, we have made millions available in relief aid to assist businesses and individuals — from the Main Street Relief Fund, Self-Employed Livelihood Fund, to expanded unemployment benefits," he said. "(The) report shows that our approach has paid off and New Hampshire remains on track to returning to the historic economic highs we enjoyed prior to the onset of COVID-19."

In August 2019, the unemployment rate was 2.6 percent, employment security said.

The state's labor participation rate stands at around 690,000; it was around 684,000 in February before the pandemic meaning that the rate has recovered but does not account for state growth of new workers moving into New Hampshire or turning employment age during the past six and a half months.

According to employment security, Manchester, Nashua, and Concord, the state's three most populous communities, continue to bear the brunt of layoffs during the pandemic followed by Rochester, Dover, Derry, and Merrimack. New Hampshire's continuing claims are the second lowest in the Northeast though behind only the state of Maine.

Since the Safer at Home order and easing of the lockdown, hospitals in New Hampshire, which accounted for one of the largest sectors of job losses, have about 80 percent of their jobs back followed by ambulatory healthcare, food and beverage stores, nursing and residential communities, and general merchandise stores. Clothing stores, restaurants, and accommodation sectors, however, remain unstable, according to data.

"Although every business and industry in New Hampshire has been impacted by coronavirus, some industries have been impacted to a greater degree than others," employment security said in its monthly report. "The restrictions placed on businesses varied by industry, and some industries were better equipped to enact remote working and social distancing measures than others. As a result, the industry in which workers were employed had a large impact on how likely they were to become unemployed during the coronavirus pandemic."

During the previous month, the unemployment rate fell for individuals with only a high school diploma to 4.4 percent but that was not due to more employment but to people in that education sector leaving the workforce. People out of work who have not looked for a job within the past four weeks are considered out of the labor force and are not counted in the unemployment rate, the state said.

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