US unemployment hits Depression-era level of nearly 15%

By Michael Hernandez

WASHINGTON (AA) - Nearly 15% of people in the US are out of work amid mass closures caused by the coronavirus pandemic with unemployment reaching levels not seen in nearly 100 years, according to data released Friday by the Labor Department.

The 14.7% unemployment rate hits Great Depression levels, and reflects the loss of 20.5 million jobs in April, the highest level ever recorded since data was collected beginning in the late 1940s, the department said in its monthly report.

The data does not, however, reflect layoffs that occurred in late April or early May. That will be reported in the next monthly report in June.

Unemployment during the Great Depression peaked at 24.9% in 1933, but hovered around 15% beginning two years earlier.

“Today’s report reflects the massive impact that measures to contain the coronavirus have had on the American workforce. This employment situation is exceptionally fluid," Labor Secretary Eugene Scalia said in a statement.

Despite the horrendous jobs report, the stock market rallied on Friday, with all three major indices posting gains through mid-day. The Dow is up over 356 points with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq both up over 1%.