NEW: Rhode Island Now Has More Than 100,000 Unemployed

NEW: Rhode Island Now Has More Than 100,000 Unemployed

The latest job numbers from Rhode Island Governor Gina Raimondo’s administration show that layoffs continue to spiral.

Going into the coronavirus crisis, the number of unemployed Rhode Island residents — those residents classified as available for and actively seeking employment — was 19,400.

Now, the Rhode Island Department of Labor and Training is reporting that 77,546 have filed for unemployment and another 11,546 for temporary disability insurance since March 9, 2020, for a total of 89,092.

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These March jobless filings coupled with the pre-coronavirus unemployed push the total number of Rhode Islanders to near 110,000.

State Creates Alert System 

The Department of Labor and Training has created an alert system so Rhode Islanders can be notified of programs tied to the federal stimulus. "COVID-19 Emergency Unemployment Insurance Application Updates You'll receive an email when the COVID-19 emergency unemployment insurance application becomes available." 

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Today, one study ranked Rhode Island’s economy as the second most vulnerable to the impact of the coronavirus crisis.

"Some states are better positioned economically to deal with the coronavirus pandemic than others. To find out the states whose economies are most exposed to COVID-19, WalletHub compared the 50 states and the District of Columbia across 10 unique metrics. Our data set ranges from share of employment from small businesses to share of workers with access to paid sick leave and increase in unemployment insurance claims," writes WalletHub.