Virginia Works’ Economic Information and Analytics Division, which serves as the Commonwealth’s official source for labor market and workforce data, reported that 4,592 initial unemployment insurance claims were filed in Virginia during the week ending February 07, 2026.
This represents a 71.2 percent increase from the prior week’s 2,683 claims and is 43.4 percent higher than the comparable week last year (3,202). Nearly 80 percent of claimants self-reported an employer which correlates to an associated industry.
The claims were filed with the Virginia Employment Commission, which administers the Commonwealth’s Unemployment Insurance program.
The top five industries (68 percent) were Manufacturing (1,184); Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services (431); Administrative and Support and Waste Management (322); Construction (259); and Retail Trade (220).
Continued weeks’ claims (21,291) were 0.5 percent lower than last week (21,403) and were 23.2 percent higher than the comparable week of last year (17,288). Nearly 92 percent of claimants self-reported an employer which correlates to an associated industry. Based on this report, the top five industries (61 percent) were Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services (3,999); Administrative and Support and Waste Management (2,493); Manufacturing (2,058); Construction (1,688); and Health Care and Social Assistance (1,634).
