Ellington

The number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits last week fell only slightly to 382,000. The level suggests hiring remains sluggish. Here are the states with the biggest changes in unemployment aid applications. The state level data are for the week that ended September 8, one week behind the national data:

States with the biggest decreases:

California: Down 8,163, due to fewer applications filed during week with Labor Day holiday

New York: Down 3,449, due to fewer layoffs in transportation, food service, and retail

Michigan: Down 2,115, no reason given

Pennsylvania: Down 1,624, due to fewer layoffs in manufacturing, transportation, health care, entertainment, and hotels and restaurants

Iowa: Down 1,214, no reason given

States and territories with the largest increases:

Louisiana: Up 6,678, due to temporary layoffs at businesses that closed because of Hurricane Isaac

Puerto Rico: Up 1,679, due to temporary layoffs at businesses that closed because of Hurricane Isaac

Mississippi: Up 1,067, no reason given