Jobless claims in a month: 22 million Americans, 1 million Texans, nearly 100,000 New Mexicans

WASHINGTON, DC — The U.S. Labor Department report said Thursday that about 22 million people in the U.S. sought jobless benefits over the past month. That’s easily the worst stretch of U.S. job losses on record. It means that approximately one in seven workers have lost their jobs.

Nationally 5.2 million more people sought unemployment benefits last week — another sign the wave of layoffs continues to engulf the U.S. economy since the coronavirus struck.

All businesses deemed nonessential have been closed in nearly every state and deep job losses have been inflicted across nearly every industry.

Some economists say the unemployment rate could reach as high as 20% in April, which would be the highest rate since the Great Depression of the 1930s. By comparison, unemployment never topped 10% during the Great Recession.

In Texas, more than 1 million people have filed for unemployment relief in the last month, including 273,567 just last week, as countless more people are still struggling to file claims.

The Texas Workforce Commission is expanding its call centers, computer servers and staff, but many still face delays.

It’s unclear how long it will be before Texas’ economy reopens. Gov. Greg Abbott is working on a plan for that and is expected to unveil some details soon. Earlier this he said that it would be a “slow process.”

In New Mexico, nearly 100,000 people have lost their jobs over the last four weeks as the new numbers showed another surge in unemployment claims for the state.

Last week, 19,494 people in New Mexico applied for unemployment benefits compared to a revised number of 26,132 the week before. Both are among the highest of weekly unemployment claims in state history.

It’s not known how many of those seeking unemployment benefits in New Mexico were working at small businesses. But small business owners said their employees are suffering the most under the restrictions because big chain stores like Walmart continue operating and are hiring.