The number of Oklahomans filing first-time unemployment claims declined for the first time since mid-March.
For the week ending April 11, 48,977 Oklahomans filed initial unemployment claims, according to unadjusted numbers from the Oklahoma Employment Security Commission. That was down from 60,534 claims filed the previous week, which stands as Oklahoma's all-time record.
Before the COVID-19 pandemic, Oklahoma's record for new unemployment claims was 9,778 for the week ending Jan. 12, 1991.
Based on unemployment filings, more than 179,000 Oklahomans have lost their jobs since mid-March.
Since March 14, Oklahoma's four-week moving average of initial unemployment claims, a less-volatile measure of weekly job losses, has climbed from 1,593 to 44,795.
