U.S. Layoffs Remain Near Half-Century Lows as Jobless Claims Fall to 197,000

By yourNEWS Media Newsroom.

The number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits remained near levels rarely recorded in more than half a century last week, adding to evidence that layoffs have stayed unusually low throughout 2026.

Seasonally adjusted initial claims fell by 1,000 to 197,000 for the week ending Sept. 19, according to data released Thursday by the U.S. Department of Labor. The previous week’s figure was revised upward from 196,000 to 198,000.

While a single weekly report can fluctuate, the more striking feature of this year’s data is how persistently claims have remained low.

Through the first 38 weeks of 2026, initial claims have averaged 209,947 per week. In Labor Department data extending back to 1967, only 1968 and 1969 recorded an average that low during the same portion of the year. The next-lowest comparable reading was 215,553 in 2019.

That makes 2026 only the third year in the historical series in which claims have averaged at or below their current level through this point in the calendar.

Initial claims are widely watched as a timely indicator of layoffs because they measure newly filed applications for unemployment insurance. They do not capture every job separation, but sustained increases or decreases can provide an early signal of changing labor-market conditions.

The latest weekly figure is itself unusually low by historical standards.

From 1970 through 2018, not a single week recorded initial claims of 197,000 or less. Such readings have appeared only occasionally since then.

Before this year, claims had fallen to 197,000 or below twice in April 2019, twice in September 2022 and once in January 2024. Three weeks in 2026 have now reached that threshold, bringing the recent total to eight such occurrences.

The four-week moving average, designed to reduce volatility in the weekly figures, also declined.

It fell by 1,750 to 202,250 for the week ending Sept. 19 after the previous week’s average was revised to 204,000.

Readings that low have been exceptionally uncommon.

Since the Labor Department series began in 1967, the four-week average has reached 202,250 or lower only 93 times. Of those, 83 occurred during the early years of the series from 1967 through 1969.

Between 1970 and the end of 2025, the four-week average fell to that level only seven times, with none occurring from 1970 through 2018. Three additional readings have occurred during 2026.

The sustained decline stands out even more because it has not been confined to one unusually quiet week.

Claims rose during portions of the spring and early summer, reaching 230,000 in early June, before falling sharply again. The Labor Department recorded 188,000 claims for the week ending July 18 and figures near or below 200,000 several times since.

Continuing claims, which track people who remain on unemployment benefits after making an initial application, have also remained relatively contained.

Seasonally adjusted continuing claims stood at 1.719 million for the week ending Sept. 12, an increase of just 2,000 from the previous week’s revised 1.717 million. The four-week average declined by 13,000 to 1.744 million.

The insured unemployment rate remained unchanged at 1.1%.

Continuing claims are near their lowest levels since 2023, indicating that the unusually low level of new applications has not been accompanied by a major increase in the number of workers remaining on benefits.

The latest figures also came in below economists’ expectations. A Reuters survey had projected approximately 201,000 initial claims for the week.

Economists have cautioned that weekly claims can be affected by seasonal-adjustment difficulties, particularly around holidays such as Labor Day, and that residual seasonal patterns sometimes depress reported claims later in the year. Even with those qualifications, the broader trend continues to indicate comparatively low layoffs.

The historical comparisons are particularly notable because today’s U.S. workforce is substantially larger than it was during the late 1960s, when similarly low nominal claims totals were more common.

That means the current figures represent a smaller proportion of the workforce than an identical number of claims would have represented decades ago.

The latest report does not by itself measure hiring strength, wage growth or the ease with which unemployed workers can find new positions. Those aspects of the labor market are captured through separate indicators.

What the unemployment claims data show more directly is that relatively few workers are currently entering the unemployment insurance system because of new job losses.

With initial claims at 197,000, the four-week average at 202,250 and the first 38 weeks of the year averaging just under 210,000, 2026 has produced one of the most sustained periods of low unemployment filings in the Labor Department’s nearly six-decade historical series.