Another 2.4 Americans Filed for Unemployment Last Week

Washington, DC, May 21, 2020-In the week ending May 16, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 2,438,000, a decrease of 249,000 from the previous week's revised level, according to the Department of Labor. 

The previous week's level was revised down by 294,000 from 2,981,000 to 2,687,000. The four-week moving average was 3,042,000, a decrease of 501,000 from the previous week's revised average. The previous week's average was revised down by 73,500 from 3,616,500 to 3,543,000.

The advance seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate was 17.2% for the week ending May 9, an increase of 1.7 percentage points from the previous week's revised rate. The previous week's rate was revised down by 0.2 from 15.7% to 15.5%.