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According to weekly unemployment figures released by the Alabama Department of Labor (ADOL) this week, Dallas County saw 105 first-time jobless claims filed last week versus 148 filed during the week of Feb 13.

Last week’s numbers are the lowest the county has seen since the start of 2021 – the final week of 2020 saw 60 initial unemployment claims filed; that number shot p by more than 100 in the first week of 2021.

Numbers climbed down statewide as well, with just under 11,400 claims filed last week as compared to the nearly 12,100 filed the previous week.

Of the 11, 395 claims filed last week, more than 6,100 were related to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

Neighboring Autauga County registered 102 claims last week, the same rate as the week before, while Lowndes County saw its numbers tick down from 37 during the week of Feb. 13 to 24 last week.

Marengo County saw its claims climb down to 27 last week compared to 56 the week before, Perry County saw a slight drop from 35 claims in the Feb. 13 report to 30 last week and Wilcox County saw a slight drop from 32 during the week of Feb. 13 to 29 last week.

As has been the case throughout the pandemic, Jefferson County had the state’s highest rate of weekly claims, with over 1,700 filed last week, and the unclassified sector of the workforce continues to make up the largest share of weekly claims, with 4,254 last week.

Other sectors that saw significant job losses were the manufacturing sector, 1,351, the administration and support and waste management and remediation services sector, 987, and the retail sector, 874.