PACIFIC COUNTY — More than 250 workers filed an initial unemployment claim in Pacific County from April 5 through April 11, down considerably from the previous week but still a historically high number.

The 264 unemployment claims represent a week-over-week decrease of 36.8%. Since the beginning of March, 16.4% of the county’s labor force has filed an unemployment claim. Another 6.7% of Pacific County workers were already previously unemployed.

New data released by Employment Security Department last week shows the county’s leisure and hospitality sector is being hit the hardest by the covid-19 pandemic and subsequent preventive orders enacted at the state and local levels. Since March 15, 45.6% of all unemployment claims in Pacific County have come from just two industries: Accommodations, and food services & drinking places.

The county’s construction sector has also seen a notable number of unemployment claims over the past three weeks. Since March 22, at least 97 workers have filed for unemployment. The number is likely higher, as nearly half of all unemployment claims in the county have not been assigned a specific job sector or industry.

ESD braces for tidal wave of claims

In an April 16 news release, ESD said it’s paid out almost $272 million in benefits since workers began losing their jobs to the pandemic. More than $125 million was paid to 265,798 workers from April 5 through April 11, an average of about $474 per worker.

At an April 16 press conference with Gov. Jay Inslee, ESD Commissioner Suzi LeVine called the state’s unemployment insurance program the strongest in the country, saying there was $4.7 billion in the program’s trust fund account at the start of the covid-19 pandemic.

“That said, we are drawing heavily on our trust fund,” said LeVine. “And so our hope is that as we look ahead at the fourth phase or the fifth phase [of emergency aid] from the federal government, that there will be conversations about how to help states backfill their trust funds.”

As of April 20, the ESD system has been retooled to accept initial unemployment claims from independent contractors, self-employed and gig workers as part of the federal government’s Pandemic Unemployment Assistance Program. The program is meant to provide financial aid for workers who have traditionally not been eligible for unemployment benefits. As such, ESD expects to see a new surge of initial claims in the coming weeks.

As part of the federal response, the ESD system will also be providing an additional short-term $600 per week to those receiving unemployment benefits. The cost of the extra benefits, as well as covering the payments of newly eligible workers, will be paid by the federal government, and not be drawn out of ESD’s trust fund account.

In an April 20 news release, ESD said it received more unemployment applications — including expanded, extended and traditional benefits — on April 19 alone than the biggest week on record, which was 182,000 applications from March 22 through March 28. With a tsunami of new claims, ESD acknowledged that the huge volume of people accessing its system overwhelmed the website during times on Sunday.

“We know many people have been unable to access the system and submit their applications. We know how frustrating this is and are adapting in real time to this massive influx of new claimants as best we can,” said LeVine in a statement. “Most importantly, we want to reassure everyone that those who are eligible will get their money and that they will be paid retroactive to their date of eligibility. This is a source of funding that won’t run out.”