Initial claims for unemployment benefits in Massachusetts rose last week compared to the week before, the U.S. Department of Labor said Thursday.
New unemployment claims, a measure of layoffs, rose to 6,672 in the week ending Nov. 30, up from 6,626 the week before, the Labor Department said.
U.S. unemployment claims rose to 224,000 last week, an increase of 9,000 claims from 215,000 the week before on a seasonally adjusted basis.
North Dakota saw the largest percentage increase in weekly claims, with claims increasing 126.4%. The percentage of new claims was the highest in the Virgin Islands: the number of claims fell by 71.7%.
The USA TODAY Network is publishing localized versions of this story on its news sites nationwide, generated from data from the U.S. Department of Labor’s weekly unemployment insurance claims report.
This article originally appeared in the Standard-Times: Unemployment claims in Massachusetts increased last week
