New unemployment claims increased by 4.2% week-over-week on January 22, and were 22.4% higher compared to the same week last year. To help add some context to this statistic, WalletHub just released updated rankings for the States Where Unemployment Claims Are Increasing the Most. 

Key Stats:

• Every state had unemployment claims last week that were higher than in the previous week except for South Dakota, Montana, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Illinois, Wyoming, Idaho, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Maryland, Delaware, New Jersey, Utah, Maine, Iowa, Kansas, Connecticut, Oklahoma, Florida, Michigan, Hawaii and Virginia.

• While there was an increase in weekly claims nationally, 11 states - including Utah, Colorado, and Georgia - had unemployment claims last week that were better than the same week last year. 

To view the full report and your state’s rank, please visit:
https://wallethub.com/edu/states-unemployment-claims/72730  

Key takeaways and WalletHub commentary are included below in text and video format. Feel free to use the provided content as is or edit the raw files as you see fit.

WalletHub Q&A

Which occupational sectors are expected to grow most rapidly within the next decade?
“The healthcare and social assistance sector is on the brink of a significant job surge within the next decade. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics projections, this sector is poised to account for almost 45% of the total job gains during this period,” observed Cassandra Happe, WalletHub Analyst. “Occupations catering to the aging population, such as home health and personal care aides, are predicted to witness the largest increases. Furthermore, employment in jobs relating to computers and mathematics will grow as more businesses expand their online presence. With consumers generating more data through digital channels, employment in roles focusing on collecting, analyzing, and safeguarding this data, specifically in the fields of data science, statistics, and information security, is projected to grow more than 11 times as fast as the average type of job in the coming years.”

Which sectors are less likely to reduce job postings in the coming months?
“Job sectors that offer in-person services are less likely to see a decline in job postings in the coming months compared to high-remote sectors,” according to Cassandra Happe, WalletHub analyst. “As economic growth slows and consumer demands change, many employers are rethinking their staffing plans. Job postings in highly remote sectors peaked in early 2022, according to Indeed, and have steadily declined since then. Organizations in these sectors can leverage technological advances, such as generative AI, to automate processes and reduce the human resources they need to succeed. However, in-person sectors such as restaurants and hospitals rely on a more personal touch to ensure quality results. Since the beginning of the year, job postings in low-remote sectors have remained stable and are expected to continue this way in the coming months.”

How do red states and blue states compare when it comes to new unemployment claims?
“With an average rank of 30 among the states with the biggest increase in unemployment claims, red states fared better last week than blue states, which rank 22 on average,” said Cassandra Happe, WalletHub Analyst. “The lower the number of the ranking, the bigger the increase in the state's new unemployment claims was.”

How has unemployment in the Pacific states – the division with the highest inflation growth in the past 12 months – been impacted?
“Among Pacific states, Hawaii’s unemployment claims have experienced the 2nd smallest decrease in the U.S. For the week of January 22, Hawaii had 1,288 new unemployment claims, a 1% decrease from the previous week. On the other hand, unemployment claims in Oregon have experienced an 85% increase for the same period.”