Clinton County Unemployment Claims Trending Down

LOCK HAVEN – Clinton County’s initial unemployment claims continue to decrease during the week ending May 30. The number of people filing for unemployment insurance during that seven day time frame was 76, down from 100 the week before. It is also down considerably from the high mark of 1,049 claims made during the week ending April 4, when the pandemic escalated the jobless numbers.

The continued claims for county residents rose to 2,242 for the week ending May 30, 142 above the 2,100 for the week prior. Of the 2,242 people with continued claims, 51% were female, 20% came from the food/accommodation sector, and 23% were 25 to 34 years of age. The high point in continued claims was 3,211 for the week ending May 2.

As announced earlier, Clinton County’s unemployment rate for April was 16.6 percent, the highest since 1983. The county was ranked 31st out of 67 counties in April. In March, the county was ranked 50th with its 7.9 percent reading, indicating that Clinton County fared somewhat better economically than other counties during the month of April. Most of the Clinton County’s manufacturing firms continued working as essential businesses during the pandemic. The initial filings and continued claims indicate that May’s unemployment rate will be lower than April’s number. The May unemployment rate is expected to be released by the state Labor and Industry at the end of June.