With 2.1 million more unemployment claims filed this week despite all U.S. states starting to reopen, WalletHub released updated rankings for the States Hit Most by Unemployment Claims, and North Carolina ranked poorly, coming in at 9th.
Since North Carolina is the 10 largest state by population, 9th would indicate it is doing slightly worse than it should for a state its size.
To identify which states’ workforces have been hurt the most by COVID-19, WalletHub compared the 50 states and the District of Columbia based on increases in unemployment claims during the latest week for which we have data (May 18) and overall since the beginning of the coronavirus crisis (March 16). We used this data to rank the most impacted states for both periods. Below, you can see highlights from the report, along with a WalletHub Q&A. To see the states most impacted since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, click here.
Increase in North Carolina Unemployment Claims Due to Coronavirus (1=Worst, 25=Avg.):
- 1,167.85% Increase in Unemployment Claims (May 2020 vs May 2019)
- 43,221 the week of May 18, 2020 vs 3,409 the week of May 20, 2019
- 9th highest increase in the U.S.
- 1,132.07% Increase in the Number of Unemployment Claims (May 2020 vs January 2020)
- 43,221 the week of May 18, 2020 vs 3,508 the week of January 1, 2020
- 5th highest increase in the U.S.
- 3,243.18% Increase in Unemployment Claims Since Pandemic Started
- 982,456 between the week of March 16, 2020 and the week of May 18, 2020 vs 30,293 between the week of March 18, 2019 and the week of May 20, 2019
- 7th highest increase in the U.S.
As every state begins to reopen at least partially after months of keeping non-essential businesses closed, Americans hope to see the massive spike in unemployment start to reverse. More than 40 million Americans have found themselves temporarily or permanently out of a job since the week of March 16, which translates to a staggering 14.5% unemployment. Though the reopening of states will provide opportunities for some people to go back to work, businesses will open in stages rather than all at once, and many may not have the resources to hire as many people as they did previously.
Not all states have experienced the same levels of unemployment due to the pandemic. To identify which states’ workforces have been hurt most by COVID-19, WalletHub compared the 50 states and the District of Columbia based on increases in unemployment claims during the latest week for which we have data (May 18) and overall since the beginning of the coronavirus crisis (March 16). We used this data to rank the most impacted states for both periods. Read on for the results, additional commentary from a panel of experts and a full description of our methodology.
States with the Biggest Increases in Unemployment Claims Due to Coronavirus
| State | Most Affected Last Week | Most Affected Since Start of COVID-19 Crisis |
|---|---|---|
| Florida | 1 | 4 |
| Georgia | 2 | 1 |
| Virginia | 3 | 5 |
| Mississippi | 4 | 18 |
| Kentucky | 5 | 3 |
| Oklahoma | 6 | 12 |
| New Hampshire | 7 | 2 |
| North Carolina | 8 | 7 |
| Louisiana | 9 | 6 |
| District of Columbia | 10 | 17 |
| South Dakota | 11 | 9 |
| Indiana | 12 | 8 |
| New York | 13 | 35 |
| Texas | 14 | 34 |
| Maryland | 15 | 23 |
| Delaware | 16 | 27 |
| Alaska | 17 | 49 |
| Tennessee | 18 | 22 |
| Nevada | 19 | 21 |
| New Mexico | 20 | 28 |
| South Carolina | 21 | 10 |
| Alabama | 22 | 20 |
| Arizona | 23 | 44 |
| Washington | 24 | 19 |
| Colorado | 25 | 14 |
| Minnesota | 26 | 13 |
| Wyoming | 27 | 45 |
| North Dakota | 28 | 16 |
| Illinois | 29 | 42 |
| Nebraska | 30 | 26 |
| Hawaii | 31 | 24 |
| Oregon | 32 | 51 |
| Kansas | 33 | 31 |
| California | 34 | 48 |
| Michigan | 35 | 11 |
| Maine | 36 | 15 |
| Massachusetts | 37 | 32 |
| Ohio | 38 | 25 |
| Wisconsin | 39 | 46 |
| Iowa | 40 | 38 |
| Pennsylvania | 41 | 33 |
| Missouri | 42 | 29 |
| Arkansas | 43 | 41 |
| Utah | 44 | 36 |
| West Virginia | 45 | 30 |
| Connecticut | 46 | 50 |
| Montana | 47 | 40 |
| Idaho | 48 | 39 |
| New Jersey | 49 | 43 |
| Rhode Island | 50 | 37 |
| Vermont | 51 | 47 |
Rank 1 = Most Affected.
Detailed Findings
| State | Increase in Unemployment Claims (2020 vs 2019)* | Increase in Unemployment Claims (May vs January 2020)** | Increase in Unemployment Claims (May vs Start of COVID-19 Crisis)*** |
|---|---|---|---|
| Florida | 2746.18% | 3662.04% | 3961.00% |
| Georgia | 3821.50% | 863.36% | 4769.85% |
| Virginia | 2181.58% | 1737.86% | 3371.78% |
| Mississippi | 1001.72% | 1966.89% | 2269.54% |
| Kentucky | 1937.07% | 938.42% | 3969.78% |
| Oklahoma | 1765.68% | 991.64% | 2629.52% |
| New Hampshire | 1660.86% | 910.58% | 4062.60% |
| North Carolina | 1167.85% | 1132.07% | 3243.18% |
| Louisiana | 769.91% | 1338.66% | 3337.29% |
| District of Columbia | 1033.41% | 965.07% | 2314.72% |
| South Dakota | 1117.86% | 756.78% | 3059.38% |
| Indiana | 1279.42% | 492.65% | 3095.90% |
| New York | 1407.51% | 328.56% | 1656.26% |
| Texas | 792.41% | 935.86% | 1681.29% |
| Maryland | 947.26% | 734.76% | 2074.72% |
| Delaware | 1104.79% | 446.63% | 1945.54% |
| Alaska | 764.94% | 770.23% | 1183.93% |
| Tennessee | 774.74% | 744.39% | 2131.11% |
| Nevada | 745.10% | 699.56% | 2172.91% |
| New Mexico | 612.61% | 819.52% | 1944.24% |
| South Carolina | 1151.88% | 233.96% | 2817.04% |
| Alabama | 899.96% | 471.02% | 2219.20% |
| Arizona | 550.96% | 758.17% | 1322.27% |
| Washington | 868.90% | 431.52% | 2222.54% |
| Colorado | 736.76% | 547.10% | 2356.18% |
| Minnesota | 962.96% | 292.36% | 2394.44% |
| Wyoming | 958.99% | 247.13% | 1302.92% |
| North Dakota | 899.09% | 291.99% | 2320.88% |
| Illinois | 661.27% | 395.45% | 1331.63% |
| Nebraska | 576.84% | 434.58% | 1955.97% |
| Hawaii | 621.78% | 375.78% | 2050.04% |
| Oregon | 653.60% | 309.80% | 1107.89% |
| Kansas | 473.81% | 475.24% | 1772.24% |
| California | 454.78% | 478.28% | 1188.53% |
| Michigan | 586.83% | 337.00% | 2708.36% |
| Maine | 764.71% | 147.50% | 2353.29% |
| Massachusetts | 595.16% | 298.77% | 1762.38% |
| Ohio | 535.32% | 293.74% | 2002.09% |
| Wisconsin | 705.58% | 120.23% | 1246.56% |
| Iowa | 585.43% | 218.05% | 1580.35% |
| Pennsylvania | 603.79% | 154.26% | 1681.46% |
| Missouri | 495.79% | 246.76% | 1938.07% |
| Arkansas | 425.57% | 306.21% | 1348.70% |
| Utah | 418.04% | 259.35% | 1639.78% |
| West Virginia | 470.30% | 204.48% | 1911.97% |
| Connecticut | 516.05% | 111.21% | 1110.10% |
| Montana | 364.31% | 132.60% | 1431.98% |
| Idaho | 420.61% | 51.23% | 1570.47% |
| New Jersey | 319.90% | 117.23% | 1331.32% |
| Rhode Island | 326.90% | 48.07% | 1626.70% |
| Vermont | 244.19% | 117.65% | 1215.13% |
*Refers to the increase in the number of unemployment insurance initial claims in the week of May 18, 2020 compared to the week of May 20, 2019.
**Refers to the increase in the number of unemployment insurance initial claims in the week of May 18, 2020 compared to the week of January 1, 2020.
***Refers to the increase in the Number of Unemployment Insurance Initial Claims between the weeks of March 16, 2020 to May 18, 2020 compared to the weeks of March 18, 2019 to May 20, 2019.
Red vs. Blue States
