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NEWS ABOUT: unemployment benefits

Bunning Cuts Deal, Ends Jobless Filibuster

Benefits will be extended a month; senator can offer amendment

(Newser) - Republican Jim Bunning has agreed to end the one-man filibuster that’s cut unemployment and other benefits to thousands of workers, making a deal with the Senate leaders of both parties tonight. Roll Call reports that Bunning will support a one-month extension of the benefits in return for the Senate... More »

Sen. Kyl: Jobless Benefits a 'Disincentive' to Find Work

If people are getting aid, they won't look for new job, he says

(Newser) - Federal unemployment benefits that expired over the weekend because of Republican objections in the Senate should maybe stay that way, says Sen. Jon Kyl, the minority whip. They don't “create new jobs,” he argues. “If anything, continuing to pay people unemployment compensation is a disincentive for them... More »

Bunning Throws Tantrum, Flips ABC the Bird

Ducks query about filibuster, huffs into 'senators only elevator'

(Newser) - After using Senate procedure last week to block the extension of jobless benefits to millions, Republican Jim Bunning hid behind Senate privilege today rather than answer questions about it—after giving the middle finger to a reporter trying to ask him about it. ABC cameras didn’t catch that; reporter... More »

Bunning Filibuster Puts 2,000 Fed Workers on Furlough

Dept of Transportation workers placed on unpaid furlough

(Newser) - The Department of Transportation furloughed 2,000 workers without pay today, thanks to a filibuster from Republican Sen. Jim Bunning. Democrat and Republican leaders had agreed to pass a one-month extension of several standard federal programs, such as unemployment benefits, by unanimous consent, a process that makes voting unnecessary. Bunning’... More »

Score One for Jim Bunning

Solo filibuster works: Senate Dems adjourn without extending jobless benefits

(Newser) - Republican Jim Bunning’s one-man filibuster, intended to force Democrats to account for the money that would extend by 30 days unemployment benefits for 1.2 million, looks to have worked, with the Senate adjourning for the weekend without passing the extension. Jobless and COBRA payments thus expire Sunday, Chris... More »

Bunning Hijacks Senate With Jobless Filibuster

'I'm trying to make a point to the people of the United States'

(Newser) - Jim Bunning held the Senate hostage last night, filibustering a move to extend federal unemployment benefits, which will otherwise expire on Sunday, for 30 days. The clash lasted until just before midnight, with Bunning complaining that Democrats had forced him to miss the Kentucky-South Carolina basketball game. But “I'll... More »

Jobless Will Stay That Way—for Years

Recovery robust enough to pull 15M off unemployment rolls unlikely

(Newser) - "Jobless recovery" is no mere catchphrase to the millions of Americans that the middle class has shed from its ranks. Many have been out of work for so long that they've exhausted unemployment benefits as the systems strains under what one expert says is "the reality of long-term... More »

Strapped States Raising Taxes on Employers

Critics say it's going to make joblessness worse

(Newser) - Massive unemployment is putting a strain on state benefit funds, and states in turn are trying to recoup the money by raising taxes on employers. In all, 36 states have raised payroll taxes, a strategy that critics say will backfire by putting a crimp on hiring. “Everything’s going... More »

Record 6.4 People Compete for Each Job Opening

Competition for work reaches new high in US

(AP) - The competition for jobs is intensifying as companies are reluctant to hire new workers, leaving millions of unemployed Americans chasing fewer job openings. There were nearly 6.4 unemployed workers, on average, for each available job at the end of November, the Labor Department reports. That's up from 6.1... More »

Unemployment Programs Going Bust in 40 States

States face raising taxes or slashing benefits

(Newser) - The combination of high unemployment and bad planning means that the jobless compensation programs of all but 10 states are on course to go broke by 2011. Some 25 states are already borrowing federal money to issue benefit checks. State lawmakers are coming under intense pressure to either shrink payments... More »

Senate Passes Pentagon Spending, Jobless Bill

Now they can go back to bickering over health care

(AP) - The Senate, meeting in the midst of a snow storm, this morning passed a critical budget bill that combines money for the Pentagon with additional help for the jobless. The 88-10 vote means the bill, passed by the House earlier this week, will go to President Obama, and the Senate... More »

Unemployment Now Lasts Longer Than Benefits

(Newser) - A rough milestone on the jobless front: The average length of time it takes to find a job—26.2 weeks—now exceeds the standard length of unemployment benefits—26 weeks. That's first time it's happened since the Labor Department began keeping stats 60 years ago, reports Bloomberg. The bit... More »

States Pass on Stimulus Money for Unemployed

$3.1B sitting unused in federal coffers

(Newser) - More than $3.1 billion in stimulus money earmarked for the unemployed is idling in federal coffers, USA Today reports, because 23 states haven’t expanded their unemployment benefits in order to qualify. Another 350,000 workers could receive benefits if they did, according to one worker advocacy group. But... More »

1.5M Jobless Will Lose Benefits by Dec.

(Newser) - As many as 1.5 million Americans will lose unemployment benefits by the end of the year, reports the New York Times. Some 9 million Americans currently receive an average of $300 a week in unemployment, and many in the current recession have failed to find work for a year... More »

Lawmakers Pushing to Extend Stimulus Tax Breaks

(Newser) - It's like a second, mini-stimulus. Lawmakers from both parties are pushing to extend the life of various tax breaks and benefits included in the original $787 billion stimulus package, the Hill reports. All told, the wish list adds up to about $88 billion. The biggest chunk of that would be... More »

Strapped States Fall Behind on Unemployment Checks

(Newser) - Years of tax and budget cuts have left the nation's unemployment system badly weakened just as it's most needed, the New York Times reports. At least a million applications are still stuck in the system and many applicants have to wait months for their first check. Sixteen states have... More »

Welfare Rolls Soar Along With Unemployment

Many make shift as jobless benefits run out

(Newser) - Welfare rolls are on the rise nationwide for the first time since President Clinton signed a bill overhauling the system in 1996, the Wall Street Journal reports. Welfare recipients’ ranks fell in some areas at the beginning of the recession, but now 23 of the 30 biggest US states are... More »

US Aid Rules Perplex Needy in Downturn

(Newser) - Hobbled by the recession, millions of Americans are struggling to navigate benefit programs that dispense aid in often arbitrary and frustrating ways, the New York Times reports. In many cases, it's all about geography. Need food stamps? It's better to live in Missouri than California. Unemployment? The lucky live in... More »

Layoffs Slow as Unemployment Hits 8.9%, Worst Since '83

539K positions cut; jobless rate hits 8.9%, highest since 1983

(AP) - The pace of layoffs slowed in April when US employers cut 539,000 jobs, the fewest in 6 months; economists had expected 620,000 job cuts. But the unemployment rate climbed to 8.9%, the highest since late 1983, as many businesses remain wary of hiring in a climate of... More »

Europe's Jobless Thrive as US Counterparts Struggle

European safety nets make joblessness easier, recovery more difficult

(Newser) - On either side of the Atlantic, different narratives are playing out among the unemployed, the Wall Street Journal reports. While Americans left jobless by the recession struggle to pay insurance and bills, Europe’s social safety nets provide many with the majority of their former incomes and cover health-care costs.... More »

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