South Dakota Among Top Ten States for Biggest Unemployment Jump

The numbers from the ongoing Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic continue to be staggering.

In South Dakota, more than 3,700 people have been infected, more than 40 have died, and countless others have had their day-to-day lives turned upside down with social distancing related closings and cancellations.

The outbreak has also tested the state's once-robust economy with historic levels of unemployment, with more than 40,000 out of work statewide since mid-March.

New numbers released from WalletHub paint a much clearer picture of just how South Dakota's jobless situation compares to the rest of the United States, as more than 36 million Americans have found themselves temporarily or permanently out of a job since the week of March 16.

According to the latest figures, the Mount Rushmore State has seen the fifth-highest unemployment spike from last May to this May - up 2,643 percent. Only Connecticut, Georgia, Kentucky, and Florida have been hit harder.

Since the COVID-19 outbreak, South Dakota's jobless rate is up 3,570 percent. That's the eighth-highest rate in America.

Extended back to the beginning of 2020, the state has seen the tenth biggest jump in unemployment - up 1,189 percent.

Just last week, South Dakota had the lowest percentage of the workforce (6.2%) file for unemployment since mid-March and the second-lowest percentage (14.5%) of workers in high-risk industries. But the state's unemployment rate is expected to balloon to the 15th highest rate in the nation (15.8%) by July.