13K Unemployment Claims Filed In Maryland Last Week

ANNAPOLIS, Md. (WJZ) -- Maryland unemployment claims went up last week from the previous week.

According to the state's Department of Labor, 13,612 unemployment claims were filed the week ending on May 8.

The previous week, 11,606 unemployment claims were filed.

Nationwide, unemployment numbers dropped to a pandemic-era low.

Some 473,000 workers filed for unemployment benefits in the week ended May 1, CBS News reported.

Despite the unemployment numbers, many Maryland businesses are hiring but are having issues finding employees, partially due to covid-19 and partially due to people wanting to stay on unemployment as their take home may be better than at a minimum wage job.

"It's not just anecdotal, I mean there's no question there are some people that have made the decision to stay home and to collect unemployment rather than returning to work," Gov. Larry Hogan said during a press conference Wednesday.

Ocean City also relies on 4,000 international students who live and work in the community every year. But, many countries and consulates are not yet fully operational and therefore cannot issue visas.

Hogan said he wants to revive the work search requirement, which means if you're on unemployment, you must actively be looking for a job.

In:
• Maryland
• Unemployment