Unemployment claims rise in South Dakota

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (Dakota News Now) - First-time unemployment claims rose to their highest level in months in South Dakota as the state’s economy continues to deal with the effects of the coronavirus pandemic.

Initial weekly unemployment benefit claims rose by over 300 to 808 during the week ending in Oct. 31, according to the South Dakota Department of Labor’s latest job report.

This number remains well below the sky-high unemployment claims made during the early months of the pandemic, when the state saw several thousand per week. However, the state had hovered below 500 weekly claims over the last couple months. Prior to the pandemic, the state generally saw between 200-300 weekly claims.

State labor officials told Dakota News Now earlier this summer that they expect the number of unemployment claims to fluctuate for sometime as COVID-19 continues to impact many different sectors of the economy.

While first-time claims rose, continued unemployment claims continued a downward trend in South Dakota. Officials say the state had 3,704 continued claims for the week ending in Oct. 24, a decrease of 835 from the previous week. Continued claims are the number of unemployed workers eligible for and receiving benefits after their initial claim.

Nationwide unemployment claims fell to 751,000 last week.