Press Release
March 4, 2021

Utah’s Unemployment Insurance Claims Report (Feb. 21 - 27)

SALT LAKE CITY (March 4, 2021) — The number of total new claims filed for unemployment benefits in Utah was 3,113 for the week of Feb. 21-27, 2021, with a total of $21,269,129 of benefits paid. There were 32,514 continued claims filed during that same week.

 

New Unemployment Insurance Claims - Feb. 21-27

Traditional Benefits

% Change

Pandemic Unemployment Assistance

% Change

Extended

Benefits

% Change

2/21  to 2/27

2,247

484

382

Week Prior

(2/14  to 2/20)

2,564

-12.4%

535

-9.5%

446

-14.3%

Continued Unemployment Insurance Claims - Feb. 21-27

Traditional Benefits

% Change

Pandemic Unemployment Assistance

% Change

Extended

Benefits

% Change

2/21  to 2/27

18,407

1,717

12,390

Week Prior

(2/14  to 2/20)

18,708

-1.711%

1,913

-10.2%

12,142

2.0%

New and Continued Claim Comparison

Current Week / Previous Week / 2019 Weekly Average

Total New Claims and Benefits Paid

March 15, 2020 to Feb. 27, 2021

Current Week 

(2/21 - 2/27)

Previous Week 

(2/14 - 2/20)

2019 Weekly Average

Traditional

(State)

PUA

(Federal)

Extended

(Federal)

New Claims

3,113

3,545

1,131

321,154

67,336

36,508

Continued Claims

32,514

32,763

8,856

$644,961,182

$72,617,355

$119,607,308

$600 Stimulus (Expired July 25, 2020)

$300 Stimulus (Expires March 13, 2021)

$919,114,729

Lost Wages Assistance

(Expired Sept. 5, 2020)

$76,781,910

 

The number of individuals who have not requested a benefit for two consecutive weeks as of Feb. 20, 2021, was 1,683. A total of 2,029 met the same criteria during the previous week.

“Total new weekly unemployment claims have decreased for four consecutive weeks, with an overall decrease of 32% during that four-week time period,” said Kevin Burt, director of the Unemployment Insurance Division for the Utah Department of Workforce Services. “With many of the federally-funded unemployment benefit extensions set to expire on March 13, 2021, we are confident there are many employment opportunities for these individuals to successfully return to work.”

The Mixed Earner Unemployment Compensation (MEUC) program was successfully deployed by Utah’s Unemployment Insurance Division on Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2021. This is a limited-eligibility program that provides an additional $100 per week, for up to 11 weeks, to individuals who have lost both covered and self-employment wages. To be eligible for the program, an individual must have received a traditional unemployment benefit during the time period of Dec. 27, 2020, through March 13, 2021, and provide evidence that they have also lost over $5,000 in self-employment wages. Additional information about the program can be found at jobs.utah.gov/covid19.

New Claims (Weekly)

 

Continued Claims (Weekly)

 

If an individual's employment has been impacted by COVID-19, they should visit jobs.utah.gov/covid19 for updated information including help for employees and employers returning to work.

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