News

Alexandria Unemployment Claims Spike in March

By James Cullum

The number of unemployment claims in Alexandria climbed dramatically in the second half of March, as thousands of city residents lost their jobs over the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Alexandria Workforce Development Center is reporting that there were 33 unemployment claims on March 14. That number rose to 797 jobless claims a week later on March 21, and then more than doubled to 1,683 claims a week after that on March 28.

Across Virginia, there are 112,497 unemployed claimants for the week ending March 28, which is an increase of 66,220 claimants from 46,277 from the week ending on March 21, according to the Virginia Employment Commission. That’s a 5,000% increase, or 110,397 more claims, over the same time last year.

Learn more about filing a weekly or continued claim here.

About the Author

  • Reporter James Cullum has spent nearly 20 years covering Northern Virginia. He began working with ALXnow in 2020, and has covered every story under the sun for the publication, from investigative stories to features and photo galleries. His work includes coverage of national and international situations, as well as from the White House, Capitol, Pentagon, Supreme Court and State Department. He's covered protests and riots throughout the U.S. (including the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol), in addition to earthquake-ridden Haiti, Western Sahara in North Africa and war-torn South Sudan. He has photographed presidents and other world leaders, celebrities and famous musicians, and excels under pressure.