More than 3 million Americans filed for unemployment claims last week

More than 3 million Americans filed for unemployment last week, according to new data released Thursday.

The massive spike in new jobless claims comes as nationwide lockdowns to halt the spread of the coronavirus pandemic have kept Americans from their workplaces, grinding businesses to a halt and forcing many companies to shutter or to lay off staff.

Just 282,000 people filed for unemployment in the previous week, before lockdowns began, according to the Department of Labor.

Thursday’s numbers are just “the tip of the iceberg,” Diane Swonk, chief economist at Grant Thornton, said as she noted that these figures do not even include data from this week.

via www.nbcnews.com