Workers file 473,000 new jobless claims, hitting another pandemic low

The number of Americans seeking new unemployment benefits continued a steady week-over-week decline, falling below a half million and hitting another pandemic low, the feds said Thursday.

Initial worker filings for jobless claims, seen as a signal of layoffs, reached 473,000 last week, down from a revised total of 507,000 reported the prior week, according to data released Thursday by the Labor Department. The overall number of people on government assistance remained high, with over 16.8 million claiming continuing assistance, the feds said Thursday.