Initial S.C. unemployment claims fall by 543 in week

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For the week ending May 15, 2,545 initial unemployment claims were filed in S.C., a drop of 543 from the previous week.

The S.C. Department of Employment and Workforce paid out nearly $60 million in a combination of state and federal benefits for the week of May 9-May 15. On May 6, S.C. Gov. Henry McMaster directed DEW to terminate federal unemployment programs by the end of June.

Greenville County saw a state-high 246 claims filed for the most recent week, while Spartanburg County had 200, according to DEW data. Richland County had 195, Berkeley County 153, Anderson County 148, Charleston County 130, Horry County 128 and Lexington County 105.

Nationally, 444,000 claims were filed, a decrease of 34,000 from the previous week.

Since March 15, 2020, DEW has paid out $6.15 billion in state and federal benefits.