Senate Prepares to Debate Bill that Would Extend Unemployment Benefits
However HR 4213 Will Not Help Jobless Who Have Exhausted Their Benefits
Changes with HR 4213 that affect the unemployed
The HR 4213 bill originally called for making extensions of such government programs as the EUC deadline and COBRA subsidies until the end of 2010. However the following changes were made before passage in the House: EUC benefits deadline would only be extended through the end of November 2010 and the
COBRA subsidy has been eliminated. The Senate could vote to reinstate the COBRA subsidy, but that remains to be seen.
Will the Senate approve HR 4213?
If HR 4213 does pass as is in the Senate, it won't be an easy battle. Recall back in March how Senator Jim Bunning (R-KY) single-handedly held up passage of an extension of EUC benefits deadline. A similar fight could very well play out this week. On the other hand, the May 2010 jobs report released by the Department of Labor could tip the scales in favor of passing HR 4213. According to the report, of the 431,000 jobs that were created in May, 411,000 were temporary Census jobs. A gain of 20,000 jobs is not enough when statistics from the Economic Policy Institute point to 1 job for every 5-6 applicants.
Exhausted your benefits? Tough luck for now
While passage of HR 4213 would be good news for the jobless who are still collecting, the unemployed who have exhausted their benefits are completely forgotten in this bill. Those people, nicknamed 99'ers for the number of weeks of unemployment they have gone through, are still pushing for Congress to enact a Tier V of EUC benefits so all jobless in America are covered. Gregg Rose, Director of Advocacy for The Long Term Unemployed (AFLTU) had this to say about why a Tier V is not being considered at this time:
"some members of the Congress and the Senate continue to say that blocking a tier 5 extension will save our children, as well as our children's children, with respect to a growing deficit in the years to come. My response to that is, the future is now! If Americans cannot afford to keep a roof over their children's head TODAY, if they cannot afford to feed their children TODAY, if they cannot provide them with medical coverage TODAY, or provide them with any of the other basic economic forms of stability TODAY, they will have no tomorrow."
Gregg encourages 99'ers to continue contacting their elected officials in Washington and stressing the need for Tier V. "Never forget that you will ALWAYS have one job, that of registered voter".
Sources:
C-SPAN 2 Television June 8, 2010
Employment Situation Summary, Bureau of Labor Statistics Economic News Release, June 4, 2010
Shierholz, Heidi Unemployed workers outnumber job openings 5.6-to-one in March Economic Policy Institute, May 11, 2010
Budd, Jennifer Unemployment Benefits Will Run Out for Over 1 Million Americans Associated Content, May 28, 2010
Email correspondence with Gregg Rose (AFLTU), June 6-7, 2010
Published by J Budd, RN - Featured Contributor in Health & Wellness
I am a registered nurse and former radio broadcast journalist in the NYC/NJ area for over a decade. Some of the stations I have worked with include Bloomberg News Radio, Sirius Satellite Radio, Fox News Rad... View profile
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53 Comments
Post a CommentI neeed cobra
i have been on unemployment since i got
laid off in april then it went from being laid off to being fired no fault
of my own.anyway i have worked since the
age of 14 with the exception of breast cancer,i was out of work for 18 months
and changed my career because of my illness worked 7 more years before being fired,i'm not lazy i will work 2 jobs just to make up for the difference
to prevent me from collecting welfare.like everyone else i have a eviction and car repo over my head even
threating to sign felony charges on me but i need my car to get to a job please
help us we are not lazy we are americans
but i guess if we were foreigners coming to america we could get help?
Let's stop supporting every other country and start getting the U.S. back on track. The government has their own social security, medical, etc. Let them sign up for our's and see how fast bills are passed. Hope you enjoyed your July 4th week vacation.
Give the unemployed 15,000.00 each if are CURRENTLY ON one of the first 4 Tiers. Not the ones who have been receiving it for OVER TWO YEARS those are just lazy pepole. This would allow them to pay off some bills, save their homes, and have a new start on life. It also saves the US big money figure it up...compare their extended benefits after 99 weeks they are MORE money than this solution would cost the US...
going without we are going to lose our home, becausw my huband cant find workhere, you say go toa never state ,thats funnye we need help, and you what stop unemploments. , please help the poor not the rich,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
it's a shame, they don't want you on welfare long. so they created the work to welfare program. i've worked so long, and now when i need some help as an american citizen i can't get it. the government cries broke. but look at all the construction going! a building here, road work their. but no money to help the citizens right here, that voted to put you into office. it's so bad that, if you're unable to financially care for your kids. here comes dhs to take them. how are you suppose to survive right now? i would love to go back to work and take care of myself and take care of my kids! but I CAN HONESTLY SAY THE GOVERNMENT WON'T LET ME!!! if you have a home, you're gonna loose it. How can you pay for it, feed yourself and your kids off what little unemployment you get??? NOW THEY'VE TAKEN THAT FROM YOU?!!!!!
Our government is a joke. I have been unemployed now since Dec of 2009. My benefits ran out the first of June. I am about to loose my home, my car, I can't pay my bills. I am not lazy there are just no jobs. I went from making 45K a year to $435 a week in benefits for just 26 weeks. It doesn't seem far to someone who has worked full time for 20 years. I hope my local rescue mission has room for me or can I pitch a tent on my State Congressmans lawn?
this will not do a thing for me i have ran out of benefits and have been out of work for over a year i dont know what this country is coming to they dont even take care of there own and i have been paying tax,s for allmost 25 years now i cant even pay last years i wish i could leave this country
Hey legislatures- WE THE PEOPLE who made it possible for you to have your jobs and take that weeklong vacation for a 1 day holiday- WE THE PEOPLE who are currently feeding and clothing YOUR families- WE THE PEOPLE who have lost are jobs and are going hungry out here, spent our last dime, have lost or our losing our homes because you have failed very badly to do your jobs and manage this country. -WE THE PEOPLE need YOU to get on the ball, work LONGER and HARDER to have more jobs created and give us a little TEMPORARY relief by EXTENDING OUR UNEMPLOYMENT BENIFITS NOW. We NEED this so we can try to support OUR families. Please give the PEOPLE the TIME, EFFORT and MONEY we need just to try to make it through these tough times.
you know this whole thing is a joke, we work hard, get in a little trouble, try to count on our government who take out taxes for every little thing, then when it comes to backing us up it's a problem, not only that the money we did get was not fun money, travel money, vacation money, it went on bills so we could see and eat, and feed our little ones, too bad congress isn't made up
of Godly people, they are thieves and they rule our lives, congress remember every dog has it's day. From waiting to exhale.