Initial claims for UI benefits by former Federal civilian employees totaled 831 in the week ending March 15, a decrease of 31 from the prior week. There were 1,419 initial claims by newly discharged veterans, a decrease of 165 from the preceding week.
There were 14,534 former Federal civilian employees claiming UI benefits for the week ending March 8, a decrease of 2,073 from the previous week. Newly discharged veterans claiming benefits totaled 22,312, a decrease of 247 from the prior week.
The highest insured unemployment rates in the week ending March 8 were in Alaska (4.5 percent), Michigan (4.2), Rhode Island (4.0), Idaho (3.7), Pennsylvania (3.7), Wisconsin (3.7), New Jersey (3.5), Oregon (3.5), Vermont (3.5), California (3.3), and Massachusetts (3.3).
The largest increases in initial claims for the week ending March 15 were in Michigan (+6,700), Ohio (+5,486), Missouri (+3,235), North Carolina (+2,586), and Texas (+2,175), while the largest decreases were in California (-5,016), New York (-2,138), Wisconsin (-2,005), Georgia (-1,862), and Florida (-1,651).