LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) - Fewer people filed new claims for unemployment in Nebraska last week, but the number is still higher than it was before the coronavirus pandemic, officials said Thursday.
The U.S. Department of Labor reported 5,135 new claims during the week that ended May 30, which is 677 less than the number filed the previous week.
The figures are still more than five times higher than they had been in early March, before the pandemic prompted state officials to impose social-distancing restrictions that forced many businesses to close.
Natoinally, 1.9 million people filed for unemployment last week.
Nebraska never imposed an official stay-at-home order, but many businesses were still forced to close because of state-mandated social distancing restrictions. Some of those restrictions have since been eased, and even more were relaxed on June 1.