| Thousands more West Virginians will soon lose their unemployment benefits if Congress does not act on an extension of those benefits.
Last week alone, 4,300 claimants were cut off. The previous week, 2,400 people lost their benefits.
When claimant's unemployment benefits expire, their numbers no longer appear in the unemployment statistics. The long-used statistical method does little to reflect the real unemployment problem.
While Pocahontas County led the state with unemployment at 16.1%, Calhoun, Roane, Clay, Mason and Wetzel posted just over 13%.
Workforce WV says by the end of this week, another 6,200 claimants stand to lose their unemployment checks, with time on the unemployment benefits clock having run out.
West Virginia pays for 26 weeks of unemployment compensation, while the federal government has offered some extension packages.
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