Initial Unemployment Claims Drop Slightly

August 11th, 2009 by Reed Allmand

According to an article in the Dallas Morning News, initial unemployment benefits claims dropped slightly last week to 550,000. That’s down from 588,000 initial unemployment benefits claims from the previous week. But the number of people remaining jobless and continuing to receive unemployment benefits has risen.

The article said:

“The number of people continuing to claim benefits rose, however, by 69,000 to 6.3 million, after having dropped for three straight weeks – evidence that job openings remain scarce and the unemployed are having difficulty finding new work.”

That’s a sure sign that job losses are having a long-lasting effect that is preventing many unemployed workers from finding new employment. Many states are now forced to take out loans from the federal government because they can no longer sustain paying massive amounts of money in unemployment benefits, especially with the increased number of unemployed workers seeking benefits. For the unemployed workers, unemployment benefits are becoming simply a pit stop before they run out of benefits with no possibility of finding new work. As unemployed workers exhaust their unemployment benefits, many are facing the harsh consequences of foreclosure, bankruptcy and even homelessness. It is important that unemployed workers consider the possibility of long-term employment. If you are an unemployed worker with lost of debt and have been unemployed for an extended period of time considering your bankruptcy options may be a wise decision before your unemployment benefits are exhausted.