The California Employment Development Department (EDD) is reporting a huge spike in the number of Californians filing for unemployment.
Many businesses have been forced to close and lay off workers during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The numbers for this past week will not be released until next Thursday, but for the week of Sunday, March 8 to Saturday, March 14, the EDD processed 58,208 claims for unemployment.
That's 14,823 more than the week before and 17,208, (42%) more than the recent average of 41,000 claims.
The EDD says it's directing as many staff resources as possible to keep up with the increased claim load.
In response to the coronavirus pandemic, Governor Gavin Newsom issued an executive order that waives the one-week unpaid waiting period to collect unemployment benefits.
Click here to learn more about the EDD's COVID-19 resources.