Jobless claims lowest in 4.5 years

Initial jobless claims dropped by 30,000 people last week to 339,000, the lowest amount in four and a half years, according to the U.S. Department of Labor.

The seasonally adjusted, weekly report follows last week’s news of the lowest unemployment rate since the before the recession in September. The jobless claim rates can be highly volatile and one state accounted for most of the decrease, according to Bloomberg News.

Connecticut ranked as one among the top five highest insured unemployment rates for the week ending Sept. 22, with a 2.9 percent increase. Alaska, Pennsylvania, New Jersey and California were the highest.