Claims for unemployment benefits fall. Focus in Rock Hill region is returning to work
Unemployment claims, though still much higher than usual, continue their downward trend in the tri-county area, and in South Carolina, as plans form to get people back to work.
The South Carolina Department of Employment and Workforce on Thursday reported its fourth straight week of declining in-state unemployment insurance claims. The new figures came out a day after the department introduced its Recall Taskforce, which will transition the state from temporary federal unemployment relief to new employment.
“It is important for the overall economic health of the state that employers have employees ready and able to return to work,” said Dan Ellzey, workforce department executive director. “We know that most workers will be relieved and eager to return to their jobs, but also understand that the restart may create difficult situations for some employers and employees. We’re here to help and look forward to making the process run as smoothly as possible.”
York, Lancaster and Chester counties had 1,722 unemployment claims for the week ending May 9. As is the case statewide, those figures are down significantly from the height of coronavirus claims but still much higher than what the workforce department sees without social distancing. York County alone had several weeks with 2,000 or more claims.
Since mid-March, the tri-county area has had 25,842 claims. York County accounts for the most at 17,517 claims. Lancaster County accounts for 5,523 claims and Chester County has 2,802.
The most recent week saw 1,141 claims in York County, 395 claims in Lancaster County and 186 claims in Chester County.
“This four-week trend correlates with the gradual transition from pronounced unemployment to a portion of the population reporting back to work as the governor re-engages the state’s businesses,” Ellzey said.
From March 15 to May 12, the workforce agency paid out more than $1 billion in state, federal and emergency benefits due largely to unemployment brought on by COVID-19 social distancing measures. The workforce agency went from 49 call center employees mid-March to about 550 now.
In the past eight weeks, South Carolina has had more than 486,000 new unemployment claims.
This story was originally published May 14, 2020 at 2:32 PM.
