Ohio initial and continued unemployment claims increase

The number of initial and continued unemployment claims filed in Ohio increased during the week ending October 10.

The Ohio Department of Job and Family Services reported that Ohioans filed 8,621 initial unemployment claims from October 4 through October 10. That was an increase of 3,918 claims from the previous week.

Approximately 1,741 initial claims were flagged for additional identity verification to ensure they were not fraudulent.

Ohioans also filed 34,591 continued unemployment claims, an increase of 909 from the previous week.

The combined number of initial and continued claims totaled 43,212.

Ohio’s unemployment rate was 3.3 percent in August, compared with the national rate of 4.1 percent. Ohio’s labor force participation rate was 61.3 percent, slightly below the national rate of 61.6 percent.

OhioMeansJobs centers provide employment and training services in all 88 counties. Job seekers can receive assistance finding openings, preparing résumés, completing career assessments and practicing for interviews.

Anyone who believes their identity was used to file a fraudulent unemployment claim should report it through the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services or call 833-658-0394.