WASHINGTON (AP) – The number of Americans seeking unemployment benefits fell to 779,000 last week, a historically high total that shows that a sizable number of people are still losing jobs to the viral pandemic.
Last week’s total dropped from 812,000 the previous week, the Labor Department said Thursday, and is the lowest in two months.
Before the virus erupted in the United States in March, weekly applications for jobless aid had never topped 700,000, even during the Great Recession.
hiring has weakened for six straight months. Nearly 10 million jobs remain lost since the coronavirus struck.
And this week, the Congressional Budget Office forecast that employment won’t regain its pre-pandemic level until 2024.
Meantime, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen says America has some “tough months ahead” in dealing with the coronavirus pandemic and for that reason it is critical that Congress pass President Joe Biden’s $1.9 trillion relief package.
In her first public interview since becoming Treasury secretary last week, Yellen said that President Biden was would willing to cooperate with Republicans to pass the measure on a bipartisan basis.
However, Democrats in Congress have signaled that if they do not line up GOP support, they are prepared to pass the measure with only Democratic support.
