The effect of coronavirus on the Wisconsin economy has already been felt in the number of business closures and subsequent layoffs.
The Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development has taken 101,464 unemployment claims in over the last nine days. 32,122 have come in just from this past Sunday and Monday.
Based on census estimations of the Wisconsin population (about 5.82 million people), that is about 1.7 percent of the entire Wisconsin population.
That is also about 2.9 percent of all people from Wisconsin of “working age,” between 18 and 65 years old based on census estimates.
The total number of claims will be expected to rise with Governor Evers’ “Safer at Home” order, which defines the kind of businesses that can stay open on site. Non-essential businesses are not allowed to operate on-site, though many employers are having their workers do business by telecommuting.