Coronavirus and the States: Nearly a Quarter of Workers Lack Jobs in Some States; Midwestern Governors Band Together

By: Tim Henderson - April 17, 2020 12:00 am

Workers wait in line to get an unemployment form at a Miami-Dade County library this month. Nearly a quarter of the workforce is unemployed in at least six states. Lynne Sladky/The Associated Press

Read Stateline coverage of the latest state action on coronavirus.

The jobless rate has reached nearly a quarter of the workforce in several states, even with choked application systems delaying unemployment claims in many areas, a Stateline analysis has found.

Michigan, Pennsylvania, Hawaii, Rhode Island, Kentucky and Nevada all have rates near 25%. The coronavirus crisis hit tourism-dependent economies in Hawaii and Nevada early; blue-collar workforces in Michigan and Pennsylvania have fewer options to work at home.

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