WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — New unemployment claims fell below one million for the first time since March, according to new figures released Thursday by the Labor Department.
However, the concern is growing that many jobs lost during the pandemic are gone for good.
"I think there's going to be a permanent level of job loss," said Marl Hamrick, a senior economist at Bankrate.com. "Leisure, hospitality, bars and restaurants, the bars are on the leading edge of the pain of this."
A recent survey by the Associated Press found that 48 percent of those who lost jobs to layoffs now believe their jobs are gone for good.
"They lost revenue. (My employer is not) able to bring employees back," said Melissa Kelley of Lake Worth Beach, who lost her service warranty job.
Kelley is also having difficulty with Florida's unemployment website, which she said left her claim for benefits frozen for more than 10 weeks.
Struggling to pay rent, Kelley said she is now confronting a new job market and working to adapt.
"I'm trying to reinvent myself, as far as working from home, my resume, doing everything I can do," Kelley said
Hamrick said that even with the permanent job loss, the economy will adapt when the pandemic ends.
"Once we get past this horrible experience, the economy will continue to transform itself and innovate, and we'll see new opportunities in business, businesses we couldn't possibly imagine in the past," Hamrick said