Unemployment Claims rose in the latest week, as the number of first-time filers jumped by 21,000 to 211,000, which is the first time this metric topped 200,000 since early January. The number of people continuing to receive benefits after their initial claim is filed rose as well, surging 69,000 to 1.718 million and matching the highest reading in 14 months.

What’s the bottom line? Continuing Claims data clearly suggests it’s harder for people who are let go to find new employment. While this number can be volatile from week to week, the overall trend has been higher, as Continuing Claims have risen by 372,000 since the low reached last September.

This correlates with the Job Cuts Report from Challenger, Gray & Christmas showing that there were 78,000 job cuts last month, which is the highest February total since 2009. The report also noted that “so far this year, employers announced plans to cut 180,713 jobs … the highest January-February total since 2009.” While the bulk of cuts were in the technology sector, job cuts occurred in all industries Challenger tracks for the first time in a decade.