Florida jobless claims down slightly
TALLAHASSEE - First-time unemployment claims in Florida dipped last week, as the state Department of Commerce is set to release an October jobless rate on Friday.
The U.S. Department of Labor on Thursday estimated 6,356 claims were filed in Florida during the week that ended Nov. 9, down from a revised count of 6,841 during the week that ended Nov. 2. Both figures are generally on par with the weekly average of claims for the year and came after brief increases in claims following Hurricane Helene at the end of September and Hurricane Milton in October.
Since the start of the year, Florida has averaged 6,576 claims a week.
After Helene, claims increased to 9,556 during the week that ended Oct. 5.
After Milton, Florida had 10,800 claims during the week that ended Oct. 19.
Florida had a 3.3% unemployment rate from April through September. The national unemployment rate was 4.1% in October.
Nationally, an estimated 217,000 claims were filed last week, down from 221,000 during the previous week.