States reported that 473,000 workers filed for new unemployment benefits during the week ending May 8, a decrease of 34,000 from the previous week's revised level and the lowest level of initial claims since March 2020. The total number of workers continuing to claim state unemployment benefits dropped to 3.6 million. Claims have fallen significantly in recent months but remain more than twice as high as pre-pandemic levels.
About 16.8 million people overall are receiving some type of unemployment aid. That includes about 12.4 million people enrolled in emergency programs such as the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance program for gig workers and the self-employed and the Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation program, which offers an additional 24 weeks of benefits.