New Jobless Claims top 600,000

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The government says new claims for unemployment benefits jumped to their highest level in more than 26 years.

The Labor Department says the number of laid-off workers seeking jobless benefits rose last week to a seasonally adjusted 626,000, from the previous week's upwardly revised figure of 591,000. The latest total is far more than analysts' expectations of 583,000.

The number of people that remained on the unemployment compensation rolls increased slightly to nearly 4.8 million, the most since records began in 1967, though the work force is now much larger.