HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) - New jobless claims across Hawaii spiked to the highest level since April on the final week of 2010, though unemployment remains much lower than on the mainland.
The Hawaii Department of Labor & Industrial Relations counted 253 new claims on Kauai, 349 in Maui County including 25 on Molokai, a flat 229 claims in the Hilo office, a small decline to 187 in the Kona office, and a leap to more than 1,600 claims on Oahu, for a statewide total of 2,752 first-time applications for unemployment benefits.
Total claims rose almost to 17,000, which was a routine level during the first three quarters of 2010 but higher than the norm for the past two months.
The weekly claims report is not a survey but an actual tally, and it's not seasonally adjusted. There is usually a spike in the second or third report of January after retailers lay off their Christmas help. This report is early for that annual phenomenon and might reflect other layoffs timed for Christmas so that the affected workers drew a paycheck through the holiday.
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