3,843,000 Americans collecting unemployment benefits, highest in 25 yrs, jump of 1.2 million

[Liberal_in_LA]

http://money.cnn.com/2008/11/06/news/economy/jobless_claims/index.htm?cnn=yes

Jobless claims higher than expected
Number of Americans filing for unemployment insurance reaches 481,000, those continuing to receive benefits at 25-year high.

By Lara Moscrip, CNNMoney.com contributing writer
Last Updated: November 6, 2008: 10:16 AM ET

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment insurance last week was higher than economists expected, and the number continuing to collect benefits shot to a 25-year high.

The U.S. Department of Labor reported Thursday that initial filings for state jobless benefits reached 481,000 for the week ended Nov. 1.

While that was down 4,000 from the revised 485,000 reported the week before, it was above the 476,000 claims expected by economists surveyed by Briefing.com. The prior week was revised up by 1,000 to 479,000.

The report shows the number of Americans continuing to collect unemployment benefits surged to 3,843,000, the highest level since 1983. The number increased by 122,000 for the week ended Oct .18, the most current data available. A year ago, the number stood at 2.59 million.

The 25-year high level of continuing claims outweighs the slight drop in initial jobless claims, according to Bob Brusca, economist at FAO Economics.

"It's a problem," he said. "The labor market is not looking good at all. The small back off, that's not great...initial claims have fulfilled any expectation you have of them for a normal or severe recession."

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1. 500,000 more expected before Jan 20.

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2. Chimponomics.

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3. Socialism in W's America

Who woulda thunk.