In March 2020, when the coronavirus was sweeping New Jersey, Gov. Phil Murphy essentially shut down the state for two months, and it was only in June that he revoked an order to stay home that began bringing people back to the world.
The result was record unemployment. In early April 2020, more than 200,000 people filed initial claims for the week. The total number of unemployed reached a peak a month later, when more than 715,000 people lost their jobs.
While the closure is long over, the problem of unemployment does not exist. The latest comparative data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that New Jersey’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate is 5.1%, the 11th highest in the country, as of December last year, according to the latest available data. This is better than it was for most of last year, when the unemployment rate was over 7%. The state has restored about 561,000 jobs, or 78% of those lost in March and April 2020.
Between March 2020 and January 2022, the State Department of Labor and Labor Development distributed nearly $ 40 billion in assistance related to COVID-19 up to 1.6 million workers. However, there are reports that workers continue to have problems with income to unemployment offices – which have largely remained closed for most of the past two years – and receiving benefits. The Department of Labor claims that 90% of people enjoy the benefits system online, and that the call center, which he opened in June 2020, made about 3.5 million calls with an average waiting time of three to five minutes. The the department finally opens some offices for limited personal assistance and by appointment only.
