ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — New jobless claims in Florida last week dropped almost 75% after rising significantly in the two previous weeks, according to figures released Thursday by the U.S. Department of Labor.
Some 17,621 Floridians applied for unemployment benefits last week, a drop from the previous week’s 69,140 new claims.
Nationwide, new jobless claims fell slightly last week to 793,000, evidence that job cuts remain high despite a substantial decline in new confirmed viral infections.
The Florida Department of Economic Opportunity recently launched a probe into how much of the week-to-week fluctuation in applications is due to fraud. The agency has deployed fraud-detection software on its mobile app due to fraudulent filings that likely contributed to a recent surge in new unemployment assistance applications, officials said.
