Californians are filing unemployment claims at a higher rate than most of the U.S.

The COVID-19 crisis is hitting California’s job market particularly hard, according to a Bee review of the latest data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Almost 3.4 million Californians filed for unemployment between March 15 and April 18.

That’s the equivalent of one jobless claim for every 17 California workers, higher than the national rate of 15 jobless claims per 100 workers. Those figures are not seasonally adjusted.

Californians filed more unemployment claims in the last five weeks than did during all of 2020.

Thirteen states have higher rates of jobless claims per 100 workers, including Nevada and Washington. The lowest rates of jobless claims are in Nebraska, Wyoming, Utah and South Dakota, states that have still not issued statewide stay-at-home orders.

The patterns of COVID-19 jobless claims are complex. Some states that are heavily dependent on tourism and leisure – such as Hawaii and Nevada – and states that rely heavily on manufacturing – such as Michigan and Pennsylvania – have been hit particularly hard. But others with similar characteristics have not.

Stay-at-home orders may play a role. There were about 11 jobless claims per 100 workers in the eight states that have not yet issued statewide stay-at-home orders, significantly lower than the nationwide rate.

This story was originally published April 24, 2020 at 9:30 AM.