Unemployment rate reaches 14.7 percent, the worst since the Great Depression

A sign alerts customers that a business is closed

(Image credit: Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

published 8 May 2020

The unemployment rate amid the coronavirus crisis has officially reached the highest level since the Great Depression.

The Labor Department on Friday said that 20.5 million jobs were lost in April, and the unemployment rate climbed to 14.7 percent. This staggering report showed that a decade of job gains were wiped out in just one month, The Washington Post reports.

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The Labor Department's March report showed the unemployment rate climbing to 4.4 percent from 3.5 percent in February. Weekly data released by the Labor Department previously showed that more than 33 million Americans have filed initial jobless claims over the course of seven weeks, a number that's equivalent to about 21 percent of the labor force, per CNN. The ADP National Employment Report also said earlier this week that 20.2 million private sector jobs were lost from March to April.

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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.

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