DNC Chair and former Labor Secretary Tom Perez released the following statement after nearly 1.3 million Americans filed initial claims for unemployment last week:

“Last week brought even more devastation for American families. Another 1.3 million people filed initial unemployment claims and thousands of Americans continue to lose their loved ones and their lives. For the 30th week in a row, more people have filed for unemployment benefits than during the single worst week of the Great Recession. And yet, Donald Trump said he was pulling out of negotiations to give Americans more COVID relief. The American people have suffered for far too long because of Donald Trump’s reckless and irresponsible handling of the coronavirus. The only way to build back better and get our economy back on track is by electing Joe Biden and Kamala Harris. This November, the American people will send a clear message to Donald Trump and his enablers: Enough is enough. It’s time for real leadership in the White House.”

1.3 million Americans filed new claims last week – hitting the highest level since mid-August. For 30 consecutive weeks, more people have filed for benefits than during the single worst week of the Great Recession.

Washington Post’s Heather Long: “1.3 million Americans filed new unemployment claims last week, little changed from the week before. (886,000 state claims and 373,000 PUA).”

CNBC: “Jobless claims jump, hitting highest level since mid-August”

Business Insider: “Thursday’s report comes in well below the highs seen earlier in the pandemic but still lands above the 665,000 filings made during the Great Recession’s worst week.”

Over 25 million Americans are receiving some form of unemployment relief – nearly18 times more than a year ago.

Washington Post’s Heather Long: “In total, over 25 million Americans are currently receiving unemployment aid.”

65 million unemployment claims have been filed since the pandemic began, far surpassing the total during the entire Great Recession.

Business Insider: “Roughly 65 million unemployment-insurance filings have been made since early February, trouncing the 37 million sum seen during the 18-month Great Recession.”

Job recovery has slowed significantly as Trump has failed to deliver more relief or get the virus under control.

New York Times: “Job growth slowed further in September, as fading government support and the failure to contain the coronavirus threatened to short-circuit the once-promising economic recovery.”

Washington Post’s Heather Long: “The jobs recovery is slowing down – a red flag for the economy & recovery.  March: -1.4 million lost April: -20.8 million lost May: +2.7 million back June: +4.8 million back July: +1.8 million back August: +1.5 million back September: +661,000 back”

New York Times: “American employers continue to shed workers at a staggering rate as a resurgent coronavirus and the absence of new federal aid take a toll on economic growth.”

More than five months past the worst of the recession, only half of jobs lost during the pandemic have come back.

Washington Post’s Heather Long: “The US lost 22.2 million jobs in March & April So far, 11.4 million jobs – 51.5% — are ‘back’  **But 10.7 million Americans still do not have a job again**  (And that doesn’t count people who are working again at reduced hours or lower pay)”

Layoffs increased in September and permanent job losses continue to mount, increasing by 2.5 million since February.

Reuters: “U.S. employers announced another 118,804 job cuts in September, with bars, restaurants, hotels and amusement parks leading the pack amid sluggish demand several months after the COVID-19 pandemic struck the nation. The layoffs reported by global outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas on Thursday were up 2.6% from August and boosted total job cuts so far this year to a record 2.082 million. The previous all-time annual high was 1.957 million in 2001.”

BLS: “In September,  the number of permanent job losers increased by 345,000 to 3.8 million; this measure has risen by 2.5 million since February. The number of unemployed job leavers rose by 212,000 to 801,000 in September.”

Black and Hispanic unemployment remain in double digits as only one-third of jobs for Black Americans have come back.

ABC News: “Broken down by racial groups, the latest data shows a disproportionate impact of the unemployment crisis on people of color. The unemployment rate in September for white workers was 7%, for Black workers was 12.1%, for Hispanic workers was 10.3% and for Asian workers was 8.9%.”

Washington Post’s Heather Long: “This is such an unequal recovery.  Barely a third of jobs are back for African-American men and women compared to 60% for white men and women.  Jobs recovered: Black men: 34% Black women: 39% Hispanic: 55% Asian: 59% White men: 60% White women: 60%

The U.S. economy is still down more jobs than the peak of the Great Recession.

Washington Post’s Catherine Rampell: “The job market is definitely healing, but U.S. payrolls are still down 7% on net since Feb. That means the economy is still ‘missing’ more jobs today than it did at the worst period of any prior postwar recession.”

Small businesses remain in peril with millions of small firms at risk and hundreds of thousands expecting to have to close in the next six months.

New York Times: “More than 400,000 small businesses have already closed and millions more are at risk.”

Americans are suffering and millions have slipped into poverty and food insecurity is on the rise across the country.

New York Times: “8 Million Have Slipped Into Poverty Since May as Federal Aid Has Dried Up”

CBS News: “‘Staggering’ need: COVID-19 has led to rising levels in food insecurity across the U.S.”