Over 4.4 million more people filed for unemployment in the U.S. last week, bringing the total since the coronavirus crisis began to over 26 million.

The figures are adjusted to account for seasonal variations. Initial unemployment claims totaled 5.2 million the week before last and were over 6 million the two weeks before that.

The levels of new claims are unprecedented. Before the pandemic began to batter the U.S. economy, the previous single-week high in seasonally adjusted claims was 695,000 in October of 1982, according to the Labor Department, which released claims for the week ending April 18 this morning.

The total of new claims last week was actually down by 810,000 from the week before, according to the department. It’s the second week in a row initial unemployment filings declined, although that hardly indicates overall improvement in the job market.

Millions throughout the country have been laid off as states implemented lockdown measures meant to slow the spread of the virus. Schools and nonessential businesses have been closed in New York since March.

States across the nation continued to cite the virus as the reason for the huge spikes in jobless claims, according to the Labor Department. Businesses like hotels and restaurants have been hit especially hard.

Industries including retail, health care, arts, entertainment, manufacturing and construction have also seen losses.

New York’s unemployment system has been buckling as millions of applications have poured in. The system has crashed repeatedly and many have been unable to get through the process at all.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo has apologized for the situation and the state launched a revamped system. Earlier this week, Cuomo called the backlog of claims an “annoying delay” and said people will ultimately get all their benefits.

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