New report shows Kansans may be dipping back into unemployment benefits

TOPEKA, Kan. (WIBW) - While unemployment claims in Kansas seemed to hold steady following the COVID-19 pandemic, a new report shows more residents are using those benefits.

With new unemployment claims having slightly decreased week-over-week on Jan. 23 coupled with high inflation and the threat of a recession, personal finance website WalletHub.com says it recently released its updated rankings for the States Where Unemployment Claims are Decreasing the Most.

To find which states had the least unemployment claims, WalletHub compared all 50 states and Washington, D.C., against how many residents per capita made unemployment claims for the week data is most recently available coupled with those same numbers from the week before.

Kansas ranked 45th overall, a significant drop, with 96 claims per 100,000 working residents. Previously, Kansas ranked 20th with 68 claims per capita. The Sunflower State had 36.23% more claims than the previous week, 41.66% fewer claims compared to the same week in 2019 and 4.01% fewer claims compared to the same week of 2022.

Meanwhile, Oklahoma ranked 6th overall - best in the region - with 64 claims per 100,000 working residents. It had 0.91% fewer claims than the previous week, 46.68% fewer claims than the same week in 2019 and 42.09% fewer claims than the same week in 2022.

To the east, Missouri ranked 11th overall with 110 claims per 100,000 residents. That is 5.94% fewer claims than the previous week, 36.67% fewer claims than the same week in 2019 and 20.45% fewer claims than in the same week of 2022.

To the north, Nebraska ranked 16th overall with 71 claims per 100,000 residents. That is 4.46% more claims than the previous week, 32.83% fewer claims than the same week in 2019 and 15.84% fewer claims than in the same week of 2022.

Lastly, Colorado ranked 47th overall - worst in the region - with 108 claims per 100,000 residents. That is 8.59% more claims than the previous week, 44.38% more claims than the same week of 2019 and 51.68 more claims than the same week of 2022.

The report also found that Kansas had the smallest decrease in the number of initial claims week-over-week. Meanwhile, Oklahoma saw the fifth-largest decrease in claims compared to 2019 while Colorado saw the third-smallest decrease. Colorado also saw the second-smallest decrease in claims compared to the same week in 2022.

According to the report, the states where unemployment claims have decreased the most include:

1. Kentucky
2. West Virginia
3. Maryland
4. Arkansas
5. New Hampshire

The states where unemployment claims have decreased the least include:

1. Utah
2. Oregon
3. Georgia
4. Montana
5. Colorado

For more information or to see where other states fall, click HERE.

Copyright 2023 WIBW. All rights reserved.