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October 22, 2008

Maine sees sharp increase in unemployment claims

By The Mainebiz News Staff

The number of Mainers seeking unemployment benefits increased 58% since last September, according to Capitol News Service.

Labor Commissioner Laura Fortman told the new service that roughly 40,000 Maine workers were unemployed last month and that the number of intial unemployment claims filed in September jumped 58% from last year. She attributed the jump to the economic troubles nationwide, and said the unemployment rate could continue to increase "in the months ahead". September's seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate was 5.6%, a slight increase from the 5.5% reported in August, but a more dramatic increase from 4.9% in September 2007, according to a press release from the Maine Department of Labor.

A total of 800 nonfarm wage and salary jobs were lost between August and September, bringing the number of jobs lost over the past year to 2,400, according to the release. Maine's jobless rate still fell below the national unemployment rate for September of 6.1%.

This article was corrected Oct. 22, 2008.

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