OHIO — Initial unemployment claims rose at the end of August, according to the Ohio Department of Jobs and Family Services.

For the week Aug. 25 through Aug. 31, while initial unemployment claims rose, the continued unemployment claims continued to fall, a trend seen throughout August.

There were 5,610 initial unemplyment claims, 811 more than the previous week. Of those, approximately 752 have been flagged for identity verification to avoid fraud. In comparison, there were 39,845 continued unemployment claims filed, a drop of 1,718 from the previous week.

The total claims filed during the final week of August was 45,455.

In July, the state's unemployment rate was 4.5% compared to the country's 4.3%. Ohio's July labor force participation rate was 62.3% compared to the national rate of 62.7%