Number of Lancaster Countians getting laid off declines 15%, new report shows lancasteronline.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from lancasteronline.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
The number of new layoffs in Lancaster County fell 17.5% last week, edging closer to the volume that was typical here before COVID-19 arrived in mid-March, a local indicator shows.
New claims for unemployment benefits dropped to 344, according to preliminary figures released by the Lancaster County Workforce Development Board on Thursday, declining for the fifth time in the past six weeks.
Prior to the pandemic, about 200 county residents were laid off a week, based on the number of new claims filed.
A leading indicator of unemployment in Lancaster County dropped significantly closer to its …
But that changed dramatically when the coronavirus appeared, leading Gov. Tom Wolf to issue stay-at-home orders and shutdowns of non-essential businesses. Those orders, in turn, triggered massive layoffs that pushed new claims to a peak of 15,700 in the first week of April.
A leading indicator of unemployment in Lancaster County dropped significantly closer to its pre-pandemic norm last week, new data shows.
The number of new claims for unemployment benefits filed by countians fell 21.8% to 417 claims, its lowest mark since late November, the Lancaster County Workforce Development Board reported Thursday.
âThe trend in initial claims suggests conditions are normalizing,â said economist Naomi Young, director of the Economic Development Company of Lancaster Countyâs Center for Regional Analysis.
âThe data shows the demographic composition of those filing and the overall levels of (new) claims beginning to look more âpre-pandemic.â This is a good sign, but a full recovery is a ways off,â she said.
The number of new claims for unemployment benefits filed by Lancaster Countians rose slightly last week but remained well below its recent peak in early January, new data shows.
Lancaster Countians have turned more bullish, with consumer confidence rallying in early January to reach its second highest level since the pandemic began, a new survey shows.
The monthly Consumer Sentiment Index, based on a local survey taken the first seven days of the month, jumped seven points to 90.4 in January. That mark is surpassed only by Octoberâs 92.6.
Meanwhile, the national index tumbled seven points to 73.8, again moving in the opposite direction than the local indicator. Januaryâs mark is the fifth time in nine months theyâve been out of sync.
Thatâs a far cry from its 100-plus mark at the start of 2020, when the economy was relatively healthy and COVID-19 had yet to run wild. The local index debuted in April, as the outbreak shoved the county and nation into a recession almost overnight.