Initial claims decline by more than 10%
OKLAHOMA CITY – The Oklahoma Employment Security Commission (OESC) reports that initial claims, continued claims, and both four-week moving averages declined for the week ending Feb. 26.
“For the second consecutive week, Oklahoma has seen declines in our already historically low unemployment numbers,” said Shelley Zumwalt, OESC Executive Director. “These numbers highlight the incredible work done by Oklahoma’s administration to grow and strengthen our state’s workforce. OESC continues to put significant efforts towards finding quality, long-term employment for all Oklahomans with our services, including the U.S. Department of Labor’s Reemployment Services and Eligibility Assessment (RESEA) program. OESC identifies eligible claimants who are likely to exhaust benefits, veterans, or claimants who previously worked in a declining industry. Our staff takes an individual yet holistic approach to connect each claimant with a variety of resources and support to best match them with careers. Additionally, all claimants are eligible for training and support through each of OESC’s local offices.”
Weekly Unemployment Numbers for Week Ending Feb. 26
- For the file week ending Feb. 26, the number of initial claims, unadjusted, totaled 1,439, a decrease of 162 from the previous week's level of 1,601.
- For the same file week, the less volatile initial claims’ four-week moving average was 1,625, a decrease of 160 from the previous week's average of 1,785.
- The number of continued claims totaled 11,929, a decrease of 578 from the previous week’s level of 12,507.
- Continued claims’ four-week moving average was 12,461 a decrease of 234 from the previous week's average of 12,695.
Nationally, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims for the week ending March 5 was 227,000, an increase of 11,000 from the previous week's revised level, the U.S. Department of Labor (U.S. DOL) reports. The four-week moving average was 231,250, an increase of 500 from the previous week's revised average. For the week ending Feb. 26, the U.S. DOL reports the advance seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate was 1.1%, unchanged from the previous week's unrevised rate.
The national weekly seasonally adjusted initial claims report is one of 10 components in the Composite Index of Leading Economic Indicators. To smooth out the volatility in the weekly initial claims data, a four-week moving average is used to assess trends.
