As businesses reopen, Tennessee unemployment still high

Tennessee delivered unemployment payments to more than 314,000 people last week as the number of new jobless claims continued to run much higher than normal amid the response to the new coronavirus outbreak.

Orders from Gov. Bill Lee and city and county officials in mid-March led to business closures and hundreds of thousands of layoffs throughout Tennessee. Businesses have begun to gradually reopen in recent weeks, and many workers have been able to return to their jobs.

But the number of new weekly filings is still high, with some businesses remaining closed and employers cutting staff as they operate at a limited capacity.