FROM: U.S. LABOR DEPARTMENT
SEASONALLY ADJUSTED DATA
In the week ending February 8, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 339,000, an increase of 8,000 from the previous week's unrevised figure of 331,000. The 4-week moving average was 336,750, an increase of 3,500 from the previous week's revised average of 333,250.
The advance seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate was 2.3 percent for the week ending February 1, unchanged from the prior week's unrevised rate. The advance number for seasonally adjusted insured unemployment during the week ending February 1 was 2,953,000, a decrease of 18,000 from the preceding week's revised level of 2,971,000. The 4-week moving average was 2,969,750, a decrease of 17,250 from the preceding week's revised average of 2,987,000.
UNADJUSTED DATA
The advance number of actual initial claims under state programs, unadjusted, totaled 358,914 in the week ending February 8, an increase of 3,727 from the previous week. There were 361,417 initial claims in the comparable week in 2013.
The advance unadjusted insured unemployment rate was 2.6 percent during the week ending February 1, unchanged from the prior week. The advance unadjusted number for persons claiming UI benefits in state programs totaled 3,464,006, an increase of 14,387 from the preceding week. A year earlier, the rate was 2.9 percent and the volume was 3,667,052.
The total number of people claiming benefits in all programs for the week ending January 25 was 3,524,188, an increase of 57,339 from the previous week. There were 5,918,175 persons claiming benefits in all programs in the comparable week in 2013.
No state was triggered "on" the Extended Benefits program during the week ending January 25.
Initial claims for UI benefits filed by former Federal civilian employees totaled 1,374 in the week ending February 1, an increase of 159 from the prior week. There were 1,916 initial claims filed by newly discharged veterans, an increase of 82 from the preceding week.
There were 23,095 former Federal civilian employees claiming UI benefits for the week ending January 25, an increase of 1,492 from the previous week. Newly discharged veterans claiming benefits totaled 30,723, an increase of 164 from the prior week.
The highest insured unemployment rates in the week ending January 25 were in Alaska (6.4), New Jersey (4.4), Rhode Island (4.1), Connecticut (4.0), Illinois (3.8), Pennsylvania (3.8), Montana (3.7), West Virginia (3.7), Wisconsin (3.7), California (3.5), Massachusetts (3.5), and Puerto Rico (3.5).
The largest increases in initial claims for the week ending February 1 were in Wisconsin (+5,041), New York (+4,830), Pennsylvania (+2,448), New Jersey (+1,853), and Ohio (+1,780), while the largest decreases were in California (-9,631), Georgia (-2,558), Indiana (-2,444), Michigan (-2,411), and Florida (-1,387).
