Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

According to numbers released by the Alabama Department of Labor (ADOL) Wednesday afternoon, more than 100 initial unemployment claims were filed in Dallas County last week, marking the first time the county has hit triple digit claim numbers since mid-August.

Dallas County logged 138 unemployment claims last week, up from 83 the week before, which represents the highest number of weekly claims filed in the county since the week of July 25 when 195 first-time claims were filed.

Statewide, first-time claim numbers climbed by more than 2,000 week-to-week, as the state registered 11,813 initial jobless claims last week versus 9,262 the week before, while nationally numbers climbed by more than 30,000, with about 778,000 first-time claims filed last week compared to 742,000 the week before.

Of the more than 11,000 claims filed statewide, less than 3,200 were reported as being related to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

Neighboring counties saw similar results, with Autauga County climbing from 94 claims during the week of Nov. 14 to 113 last week, though Lowndes County notched down 10 points to 24 last week.

Marengo County saw its numbers stay relatively the same, inching down by one to register 45 last week, while Perry County ticked up to 41 claims last week versus 29 the week before.

Wilcox County, like Perry County, dropped by one, registering 30 claims last week as compared to 31 during the week of Nov. 14.

As has been the case throughout the pandemic, Jefferson County continues to be the hardest hit, logging nearly 2,000 first-time jobless claims last week, and the unclassified sector of the workforce continues to contribute the largest share of weekly claims, making up 4,773 of the claims filed statewide last week.

Other sectors continuing to feel the impact of the economic slowdown are the healthcare and social assistance sector, which shed 1,070 jobs last week, the administrative and support and waste sector, which logged 1,032 claims last week, the manufacturing and retail trade sectors, which each contributed more than 900 jobs to last week’s numbers, and the accommodation and food services sector, which dropped 632 jobs last week.