Jobless claims surge from 282,000 to record high of 3.3 million

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(Image credit: Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

Amid the COVID-19 coronavirus crisis, unemployment claims have surged to a record high.

The Department of Labor on Thursday reported that a staggering 3.28 million people filed initial jobless claims last week, when businesses around the country were forced to lay off workers as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, CNN reports. That's more than four times higher than the previous record high of 695,000 in October 1982, per The Associated Press. The Department of Labor first began to track the data in 1967.

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Brendan Morrow

Brendan worked as a culture writer at The Week from 2018 to 2023, covering the entertainment industry, including film reviews, television recaps, awards season, the box office, major movie franchises and Hollywood gossip. He has written about film and television for outlets including Bloody Disgusting, Showbiz Cheat Sheet, Heavy and The Celebrity Cafe.