States Where Unemployment Claims Are Increasing the Most | WalletHub
From: Dylan Polkinghorne
Assistant Teaching Professor, Cofrin School of Business, University of Wisconsin – Green Bay
Do you think the hiring dynamic is currently tilted in the employees’ favor?
With the current trends in employment, I believe that employees have the benefit. The current shift in the employment trend has put organizations with more open positions than employees, giving the employees a choice in the manner. Employees are moving within the market to select a position that meets their expectations and needs. Organizations that do not provide adequate benefits, paid time off, hours worked, or flexibility are losing their employees to organizations willing to meet these needs. Since the trend shows more open positions, employees can move through positions. Many have been labeled “job hoppers“, moving through positions until they find their preferred fit. This has forced the hiring dynamic to be in the employee’s favor, allowing employees to negotiate and wager for their beliefs. If the employee receives an unsatisfied offer, they still have the security to deny and walk away.
Given the current circumstances, what trends do you expect to see in terms of unemployment in the foreseeable future?
I believe that there will be a shift in unemployment. After the pandemic, there has been a shift in the demands consumers are searching for. In turn, this is providing more positions for organizations. Initially, post-pandemic organizations were consolidating positions they felt were no longer needed, leading to increased unemployment. With the supply/demand shift for consumers reaching normal, organizations are now left with providing more employee positions. This will allow organizations to meet the needs of potential new employees and be competitive in their selection process.
What are your predictions for the job market as we move forward during 2024 (job gains, hiring confidence, quit rates etc.)?
One of my predictions for the job market is that there will be a shift in the future. I believe that organizations understand the expectations of their employees and are experiencing the market’s competitive nature. Organizations have recovered after the pandemic and are settling the differences in their workforce. Understanding the supply and demand for the products has equaled and allowed the organizations to reset their numbers. This has played into the preparations for hiring trends that each organization is looking for and provided an understanding of the needs of the employees. This has given the employees less desire to quit and helped with retention. The movement for the job trend will slowly move back in favor of the organizations. This will come from providing adequate person-environment fit through the needs of the employees.
Methodology
In order to identify where unemployment claims are increasing the most, WalletHub compared the 50 states and the District of Columbia based on changes in unemployment insurance initial claims for several key weeks. We also considered the number of claims per people in the labor force. The metrics are listed below with their corresponding weights. We then used those metrics to rank-order the states.
- Change in Number of Unemployment Insurance Initial Claims in Latest Week vs. Previous Week: Double Weight (~33.33 Points)
Note: This metric measures the change in the number of unemployment insurance initial claims in the week of October 28, 2024 compared to the week of October 21, 2024. - Change in Number of Unemployment Insurance Initial Claims in Latest Week vs. Same Week of 2023: Full Weight (~16.67 Points)
Note: This metric measures the change in the number of unemployment insurance initial claims in the week of October 28, 2024 compared to the week of October 30, 2023. - Change in Number of Unemployment Insurance Initial Claims Year to Date vs. Same Period of 2023: Double Weight (~33.33 Points)
Note: This metric measures the change in the number of unemployment insurance initial claims between the weeks of January 1, 2024 to October 28, 2024 compared to the weeks of January 2, 2023 to October 30, 2023. - Number of Unemployment Insurance Initial Claims per 100,000 People in Labor Force: Full Weight (~16.67 Points)
Sources: Data used to create this ranking were obtained from the U.S. Department of Labor.
Source: States Where Unemployment Claims Are Increasing the Most
