Caroline: More than 1.3 million Americans applied for unemployment benefits last week, as states reversed their reopening plans because of a surge in new coronavirus cases.
The Labor Department revealed Thursday that another 1.3 million people filed first-time claims for unemployment aid in the week ending July 4, showing many employers are still laying people off and households across the nation are ... to make ends meet.
Continued claims, which includes people who have filed for benefits for at least two weeks in a row, stood at a staggering 18.1 million in the last week, as many still haven't been able to return to work.
Concerns are mounting for the future of the working population as the federal uplift of $600 a week in unemployment benefits draws to a close and more major names including Levi's and United Airlines have announced huge lay-offs of staff.
The persistently elevated level of layoffs are occurring as a spike in virus cases has forced six states to reverse their move to reopen businesses, shuering large parts of the economy once more as infections reach worrying new heights.
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