NEW ORLEANS (AP) — First-time claims for unemployment benefits in Louisiana rose 19 percent last week, but there was a slight slowdown in the growth of continued payments for those still without jobs, the state Workforce Commission reported Friday.

There were 6,113 initial claims for the week ending June 20, up from 5,139 for the previous week. For the comparable week of ending June 21, 2008, the state recorded 2,952 first-time recipients.

Continued weeks of benefits increased 1.4 percent to 57,408 last week, compared with 56,614 the previous week. The previous week saw a 3.2 percent rise in additional benefit weeks.

The Workforce Commission said the transportation equipment industry sector — which includes vehicle and ship building and aerospace — had the largest increase in first-time claims: 1,367 for the latest week, compared with only 44 for the previous week.