Unemployment claims are rising sharply in Scott County, and have more than doubled in the two weeks since Christmas.
According to data from the TN Dept. of Labor & Workforce Development, there were 375 total jobless claims filed in Scott County for the week ending Jan. 9, including 73 initial claims and 302 continued claims.
That was up considerably from the week ending Jan. 2, when there were 282 claims filed, including 84 new claims and 198 continued claims.
For the week ending Dec. 26, there were 163 claims filed, including 27 new claims and 136 continued claims.
The 375 jobless claims filed last week represents about 4.4% of Scott County’s current work force.
A rise in unemployment claims is not unexpected after Christmas. Each year, jobless claims rise as seasonal employees hired during the holiday season see their jobs end.
The same is true across the state. There were 21,954 new claims filed statewide last week, up from 16,554 the previous week and 10,198 the week before that.
Unemployment claims have been rising in Scott County since initial claims bottomed out at less than 5,800 for the week ending Nov. 28.
There were 58,945 continued unemployment claims filed in Tennessee last week, up from 51,816 the previous week.
