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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

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Record year for unemployment claims

Unemployment claims in Washington set new records this year, with more than 500,000 jobless workers collecting almost $4.7 billion in benefits.

The Employment Security Department this morning compared the results with 2009, when 475,000 claimants collected $4 billion in benefits, and 2008, when 290,000 collected $1.2 billion.

The federal government, which recently extended long-term benefits, paid 58 percent of the 2010 claims.

Unemployed workers drew benefits for an average 41 weeks, up from 28 weeks in 2009.

 



Bert Caldwell
Bert Caldwell oversees production of the opinion pages, including writing editorials, and editing and selecting letters, columns and cartoons.