The Oklahoma Employment Security Commission (OESC) reports that initial claims numbers increased, while continued claims and both four-week moving averages continued to decline.

“We are pleased to see that the continued claims four-week moving average has declined for the eighth consecutive week,” said Shelley Zumwalt, OESC Executive Director. “Oklahoma is continuing to see economic growth and recovery. Last week, the agency reported that the Oklahoma workforce reached 1.8 million participants in August, which is the most the state has ever seen. Overall, we are continuing to trend toward pre-pandemic unemployment numbers. In August, Oklahoma’s unemployment rate dipped to 3.2%, eighth lowest in the nation. The agency is continuing to prioritize building our state’s workforce by providing unemployed Oklahomans with benefits and re-employment opportunities.”

For the file week ending Sept. 11, the number of initial claims totaled 3,435, an increase of 755 from the previous week’s level of 2,680.

For the same file week, the less volatile initial claims four-week moving average was 2,984, a decrease of 138 from the previous week’s average of 3,122.

The number of continued claims totaled 22,077, a decrease of 1,802 from the previous week’s level of 23,879.

Continued claims’ four-week moving average was 24,695, a decrease of 1,817 from the previous week’s average of 26,512.

Nationally, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims for the week ending Sept. 18 was 351,000, an increase of 16,000 from the previous week’s revised level, the U.S. Department of Labor reports. The four-week moving average was 335,750, a decrease of 750 from the previous week’s revised average. For the week ending Sept. 11, U.S. DOL reports the advance seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate was 2.1%, an increase from the previous week’s revised rate.

The national weekly seasonally adjusted initial claims report is one of 10 components in the Composite Index of Leading Economic Indicators. To smooth out the volatility in the weekly initial claims data, a four-week moving average is used to assess trends.

Claimant Resources

Individuals seeking unemployment benefits should go to https://ui.ok. gov and create an account with the Get Started button to connect their social security number and pull all unemployment information into one location.

Unemployment claimants should be aware that not returning to work when recalled or when work is available could potentially lead to disqualification from receiving unemployment benefits.

Employers may report this activity by calling 405- 962-7524, or mailing OESC at P.O. Box 52006, Oklahoma City, OK, 73152-2006.

If a claimant returns to work full time, they should keep their unemployment claim open with OESC and not certify a weekly claim. If they return part time, a claimant may continue to certify their weekly claim and must report all gross earnings for the week to potentially receive a partial benefit. Eligibility for continued benefits is determined on the circumstances of each individual claimant.

OESC is an excellent resource for people looking to re-enter the job market by connecting Oklahomans with available employment through okjobmatch.com.

Individuals who filed for unemployment between May 2-15 and who work two part-time jobs or one full-time job of 32 hours or more per week for six consecutive weeks are eligible for the governor’s Back to Work Initiative. Eligible Oklahomans can apply at https://oklahoma.gov/oesc/individuals.

Claimants looking for work who need child care assistance are encouraged to use the Oklahoma Department of Human Services’ (OKDHS) 60 days of subsidized child care by visiting okdhslive.org.