The South Carolina Department of Employment and Workforce says its seen a steady decline in the number of unemployment claims in South Carolina.
Figures released Monday morning show initial applications for unemployment benefits dropped by 2,780 three weeks ago. The DEW says it received 9,007 claims for the week of January 22nd. That's 1,600 fewer than the 10,623 filed the week before.
The decline continued the week of Feb. 5- Feb. 11 as the DEW received 4,906 claims for jobless benefits, down from 6,227 claims submitted during the prior week.
In a news release Monday, John Finan, DEW's executive director, said, "The decrease in initial claims is certainly an indication that the state's labor force is headed in the right direction. We still remain cautiously optimistic about the state's economy because as the economy recovers so will the state's workforce."
The U.S. Department of Labor is also reporting that the number of initial unemployment claims fell for the fourth consecutive week, which marks the lowest level in the past two and a half years.
The DEW says the lower application numbers indicates that layoffs in the state are declining, especially in the manufacturing industry. In December, South Carolina added 200 manufacturing jobs.
