Rising unemployment claims hit some states hard while others recover

It should come as no surprise that the state of the job market differs greatly by region. While some states, like Colorado, Washington and Mississippi, continue to report rising joblessness, while others like New York have seen a drop in unemployment claims (from 13.91% to 7.04% week over week). North Dakota saw the biggest increase of unemployment rates this last week, while Michigan saw the smallest increase.

However, beyond merely reporting important employment statistics, WalletHub’s most recent ‘States Where Unemployment Claims Are Increasing the Most’ gives valuable expert insights into the numbers.

David C. Yamada, a professor of law at Suffolk University, explains that the current job market is worse than before, but still not bad. “The job market is less employee-friendly than during the most acute labor shortage and ‘Great Resignation’ period of just two years ago, but the jobless rate remains low, and hiring in many fields holds steady. That said, older workers and laid-off workers continue to report facing hedgerows in their job searches.”

Christopher Altizer, an adjunct lecturer at Florida International University, paints a less optimistic picture, “…the anecdotal evidence from the early-in-career labor pool provides stories of recruiters ghosting applicants, ‘entry-level’ jobs requiring years of experience, and job offers well below expectations. Those currently employed in hot jobs will always have the advantage, but for many, if not most, the ability to advance by hopping jobs or crossing into a new discipline is, and I expect will remain a challenge.”

Altizer also advised workers to stay ahead of the curve by getting acquainted with artificial intelligence tools: “I believe keeping up with AI practices will be a huge advantage to job seekers in almost every field. The job opportunities that will be present – and are already being posted, as anyone can see – will increasingly highlight familiarity/skill with AI as a competitive advantage.”

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While Altizer sees potential for AI skills to be leveraged by some employees in the short term, he predicts the technologies will not be all good for employees. “Given the faster-than-any-event-ever progression of AI and the intent of tech companies to make it indispensable and accessible to all, it will begin to replace entire job categories sooner than anyone imagines. I expect this will blunt the impact of talent shortages for many jobs but will exacerbate the social and economic impact.”