unemployment

The Louisiana Workforce Commission announced Thursday that it was extending the application period in the 20 parishes that were part of the federal disaster declaration.

Washington is still working on making a deal to extend long-term unemployment benefits.  Senator David Vitter told 710 KEEL he doesn't mind extending it, but there needs to be a way to pay for it.

The struggle in Washington over whether to renew expired benefits for the long-term unemployed is as much about providing aid to 1.3 million out-of-work Americans as it is about drawing the first political line of an election year.

The jobs picture is looking slightly better in Shreveport-Bossier and across Louisiana compared to last month, but still not as well as compared to last year.

Unemployment is down in Louisiana and Texas, while the unemployment rate in Arkansas rose in October 2013.

U.S. employers added 204,000 jobs in October, an unexpected burst of hiring during a month in which the federal government was partially shut down for 16 days.

The number of people seeking U.S. unemployment benefits fell 9,000 to a seasonally adjusted 336,000 last week, bringing applications to pre-recession levels.

Applications for US unemployment benefits dropped 15,000 to a seasonally adjusted 358,000 last week, though the figure was distorted for the second straight week by California's efforts to clear backlogged claims.

The number of Americans seeking unemployment benefits rose just 1,000 last week to a seasonally adjusted 308,000, hovering near six-year lows. The tiny increase suggests companies are still cutting very few jobs.

Unemployment is up across the country as it is across the Ark-La-Tex with Louisiana seeing the biggest increase among the three states.