Colorado reaches $2.2 billion in total unemployment payments

By PATTY NIEBERG
Associated Press/Report for America
DENVER (AP) — Colorado saw an uptick in unemployment claims amid the coronavirus pandemic's economic impact, the state labor department said Thursday, noting it has paid out more than $2 billion in unemployment benefits in just over two months.

"The $2.2 billion paid out in total benefits since March 29 is equivalent to what we paid out in 2010, at the height of the Great Recession," said Ryan Gedney, senior economist for the Department of Labor and Employment.

A big difference today is that federal unemployment payments make up almost $1.2 billion, or almost half of the benefits paid out by the state.

Some 12,941 people filed unemployment claims during the week ending June 6 — slightly higher than 12,149 claims filed the previous week, the department said.

More than 10,000 people filed for federal Pandemic Unemployment Assistance the week ending June 6, which includes gig workers and self-employed individuals. That figure was up from 6,414 the week ending May 30 and bringing the total to 540,506.

Since March 14, Colorado has processed 449,323 unemployment claims, representing 16.9% of the state's workforce eligible for unemployment insurance. The largest number of claims, consistent with previous weeks, comes from the accommodation and food services.

Nationally, the number of unemployed people fell by 2.1 million to 21 million at the end of May, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor and Statistics. As of last week, the national unemployment rate declined to 13.3%, reflecting a resumption of economic activity after a fallout in March and April due to the pandemic. 

As of May 30, 263,732 people in Colorado were receiving unemployment benefits. That represents 9.9% of all eligible employees in the state, according to the U.S. Employment and Training Administration.

In May, employment rose in leisure and hospitality, construction, education and health services, and retail trade. But employment in government continued to decline sharply, the bureau reported.

For most people, the coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia and death.

Colorado has had more than 28,000 cases of the coronavirus and more than 1,300 virus deaths.
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Nieberg is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.