Initial Unemployment Claims Creep Up; Trust Fund Payments Continue Decline

August 20, 2020

Iowa Workforce Development (IWD) announced there were 6,544 initial unemployment claims filed by individuals for the week of Aug. 9-15. There was approximately $23.4 million paid out of the state unemployment trust fund, which is about $3.6 million less than the week prior. The number of continuing unemployment claims was 83,610, which is about 8,500 claims fewer than last week. The top sectors that saw the most initial claims filed included manufacturing (1,664); those not identified by industry including the self-employed, independent contractors, etc. (887); and health care and social assistance (608).