CO Labor Dept.: 8,008 additional Coloradans file for unemployment

DENVER — An additional 8,008 people filed for unemployment benefits in the week ending July 25, the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment said Thursday, a drop of about 480 from the week prior.

In the same period, 9,727 self-employed and gig workers in Colorado applied for federal Pandemic Unemployment Assistance, which are federal benefits for workers traditionally not eligible for state-level unemployment. That is an increase of 1,800 from the prior week.

That specific federal assistance, along with a $600 per week additional benefit for all claims, is due to expire at the end of the month, with reports from Capitol Hill on Wednesday pointing toward an impasse on new aid.

In a call with reporters, CDLE spokeswoman Cher Haavind said the department is waiting to see what happens in Washington this week and has already started warning claimants of the possible stop in additional benefits.

“We have no update from Congress,” Haavind said.

The number of continuing claims was at 223,298 Coloradans in the week ending July 11, continuing a pattern where that rate has bounced between the 220,000 to 265,000 range every other week. The number of continuing federal claims declined to 74,905 last week from 90,490 in the week prior.

Colorado distributed $76.6 million in regular unemployment-insurance payments in the week, a slight drop from $80.9 million the prior week.

Nationwide, the U.S. Department of Labor said 1.434 million Americans filed for first-time unemployment benefits, an increase of 12,000 from the previous week and the second straight week of rising first-time claims as congressional benefits are set to expire.

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