Spokane County weekly jobless claims increase, but remain below pre-pandemic levels

From staff reports

New jobless claims in Spokane County increased to the greatest number recorded since June but continue to remain below pre-pandemic levels.

Laid-off workers in the county filed 339 new claims during the week ending Aug. 7, compared with 285 claims filed the week before, according to the Washington state Employment Security Department.

New unemployment claims in the state rose to 5,420 last week, a 10.2% increase in applications compared with 4,919 from the week before, the department reported Thursday.

Continued claims in all unemployment categories decreased 0.5%, with 306,858 applications filed last week.