Please help the Jobless workers

[NiaX]

The House introduced a bill on yesterday to retroactivate unemployment benefits.

Click on the link to send an email to your congressional rep. Please pass the link so congress can get as many emails telling them to pass the bill BEFORE the holiday recess!

Thanks!

http://www.nelp.org/page/speakout/July4recess

[AGDee]

Done, although I know if anybody is going to try to turn this around it would be John Dingell. They are estimated it would be a 1/4 of a billion dollar hit to Michigan's already very hurt economy. You might as well just shut the state down and move us as refugees elsewhere or something.

And, quite frankly, if my ex-husband loses his unemployment benefits at this point, he will definitely lose his house and I could very well lose mine too.

[ree-Xi]

Originally Posted by AGDee

Done, although I know if anybody is going to try to turn this around it would be John Dingell. They are estimated it would be a 1/4 of a billion dollar hit to Michigan's already very hurt economy. You might as well just shut the state down and move us as refugees elsewhere or something.

And, quite frankly, if my ex-husband loses his unemployment benefits at this point, he will definitely lose his house and I could very well lose mine too.

For your sake and everyone else who is being affected, I wish you luck!!

[Kevin]

I wish you luck, but when should unemployment benefits finally be cut off? This is deficit spending on folks who have been unemployed for (in some cases) 99 weeks.

My understanding of unemployment (and I've never taken unemployment, so this is based on very limited knowledge) is that you have to show evidence of at least three job applications per week.

If that's true and you've applied for over 300 jobs and not made progress, maybe the problem isn't the job market.

At some point, this free money has to dry up.

[BluPhire]

Originally Posted by Kevin

I wish you luck, but when should unemployment benefits finally be cut off? This is deficit spending on folks who have been unemployed for (in some cases) 99 weeks.

My understanding of unemployment (and I've never taken unemployment, so this is based on very limited knowledge) is that you have to show evidence of at least three job applications per week.

If that's true and you've applied for over 300 jobs and not made progress, maybe the problem isn't the job market.

At some point, this free money has to dry up.

I do agree at a certain point the money does have to dry up.

I will say this though it needs to be done in shifts. Folks that haven't been working for a long time will and I really hate to say this, be cut off. I know Michigan is hard hit, but it may be time to move. It isn't any accident that the census shows Dallas-Fort Worth having the largest population increase. Sometimes you gotta leave and start over.

[AGDee]

Originally Posted by Kevin

I wish you luck, but when should unemployment benefits finally be cut off? This is deficit spending on folks who have been unemployed for (in some cases) 99 weeks.

My understanding of unemployment (and I've never taken unemployment, so this is based on very limited knowledge) is that you have to show evidence of at least three job applications per week.

If that's true and you've applied for over 300 jobs and not made progress, maybe the problem isn't the job market.

At some point, this free money has to dry up.

Then make it more graduated than the way they are doing this. The way this is working right now is that everybody who has been collecting for more than 6 months is cut off whether it's their 6month + 1 week or their 99th month. I'd be very curious to see better stats on just how long some of these people have been on unemployment. My ex has only been collecting unemployment since February, when his severance pay ran out.

All that said, I disagree with the statement "if you have applied for 300 jobs and still don't have one... " in a market where there are 400 applicants for every ONE job. We're talking about an area where the unemployment is 1 in 6.

[Kevin]

Originally Posted by AGDee

All that said, I disagree with the statement "if you have applied for 300 jobs and still don't have one... " in a market where there are 400 applicants for every ONE job. We're talking about an area where the unemployment is 1 in 6.

If that's the situation, you have two choices--1) figure out a way to be successful and self-employed or 2) be willing to relocate.

Eventually, I suppose, if the benefits run dry, one of those choices will be forced on folks in your situation. I just hope you're in a situation where you're doing it on your terms.

Lots of folks have opted to start over. It sucks, but them's the breaks.

[AGDee]

Originally Posted by Kevin

If that's the situation, you have two choices--1) figure out a way to be successful and self-employed or 2) be willing to relocate.

Eventually, I suppose, if the benefits run dry, one of those choices will be forced on folks in your situation. I just hope you're in a situation where you're doing it on your terms.

Lots of folks have opted to start over. It sucks, but them's the breaks.

As the ex-wife of the unemployed father of her children, I have no options. I have a job. If he leaves the state, I either get the kids full time or report him for violating a court order. Seems kind of nuts to report him for violating a court order. However, relocating still means losing your house, which is what I said the concern was.. that one or both of us will lose our houses.

Kevin, I know you'll never understand how someone can end up in dire straits, but the kind of people I'm talking about are people who were continuously employed for 25+ years with master's degrees, families, etc. They have paid more in taxes than some people will ever make. They can do ok for a few years from selling the extra car, living off of retirements funds, etc. At some point though, the money is truly gone. The unemployment is only $300 a week. It's certainly not living in the lap of luxury. It almost covers the mortgage payment for some people. Almost.

[Kevin]

Originally Posted by AGDee

As the ex-wife of the unemployed father of her children, I have no options. I have a job. If he leaves the state, I either get the kids full time or report him for violating a court order. Seems kind of nuts to report him for violating a court order. However, relocating still means losing your house, which is what I said the concern was.. that one or both of us will lose our houses.

Kevin, I know you'll never understand how someone can end up in dire straits, but the kind of people I'm talking about are people who were continuously employed for 25+ years with master's degrees, families, etc. They have paid more in taxes than some people will ever make. They can do ok for a few years from selling the extra car, living off of retirements funds, etc. At some point though, the money is truly gone. The unemployment is only $300 a week. It's certainly not living in the lap of luxury. It almost covers the mortgage payment for some people. Almost.

As dire as it is, that does not explain or justify why anyone thinks they deserve compensation from the government (from the taxpayers) when the government doesn't even really have that money to pay them. Sometimes folks' houses get foreclosed when they lose jobs. Sometimes they have to move, declare bankruptcy, etc.

You are not entitled to a job which pays $x simply because you are qualified for the job you used to have.

[IrishLake]

I've been on unemployment since April of last year. I'm smart, experienced, educated, hard working, have a great resume and great references. Finally, after 15 months of being on unemployment compensation, I got a job offer and I should be starting next Tuesday. The job offer comes none too soon, because my compensation expired the last week of May. I've been living on a meager savings since then, that as of this week, is exhausted. We will have to borrow money until I start getting paychecks.

Kevin, it varies state to state. However, in Ohio, we have to contact 2 potential employers per week. That doesn't mean apply for, though. It can mean follow up with, call, e-mail, inquire about the status, etc. And yes, you have to keep evidence (I keep a journal, and save anything electronically). I would have been SOL a long time ago if applying for 3 jobs a week were the case.

I have a BS in environmental science, I've had 8 interviews since I was laid off, and 2 second interviews that did not lead to offers. Things are incredibly competative right now. I apply for jobs in my field, with little luck getting an interview (too much experience, not enough experience, too many job aplicants, etc). I apply for jobs in areas I have zero experience in, and I'm told I won't be hired because I don't have experience or a related degree. I apply for jobs bartending, waiting tables, working at Target, and I'm told I have too much experience. A friend of mine (who is a manager at a grocery store) explained it this way - They won't hire someone like me because:

A. They don't want to hire someone who will leave the job as soon as they get a "real" job offer. They don't want to waste time training me when I won't stay.
B. They don't want to hire someone they see as being "smarter" than them. The positions I have listed in my resume are intimidating.

Were it not for the amazing timing of this new job, I would be royally screwed. We'd lose our little starter house, my husbands car, and would probably have to move in with family. And asking for help like that is not something I look forward to. Asking for a loan from my in-laws to pay the bills, get food and pay for gas until I get paid is hard enough. I took this job with no questions asked, even though it will mean my children will be with a babysitter for over 14 hours for 4 days a week, I will have a 1 hour 20 minute commute each day, and we will evetually have to relocate.

Everything sucks right now. I still need help. Yep, I know it won't last forever, but it is a kick in the nuts that I no longer get any compensation, but people who were laid off a week before me are still getting assistance, because they made the deadline that I missed by a week.

I won't beleive I actually have the job until I'm there working. I still feel like they will call and rescind the offer.

[MysticCat]

Originally Posted by IrishLake

I've been on unemployment since April of last year. I'm smart, experienced, educated, hard working, have a great resume and great references. Finally, after 15 months of being on unemployment compensation, I got a job offer and I should be starting next Tuesday.

Yay!

[IrishLake]

Thanks! But I'm still very anxious. It feels almost too good to be true, that's why I don't think it'll feel real until I'm actually there.

[MysticCat]

Originally Posted by IrishLake

Thanks! But I'm still very anxious. It feels almost too good to be true, that's why I don't think it'll feel real until I'm actually there.

Understandable, and I can also see from the rest of your post that it's not ideal. Still, though -- yay!

[Drolefille]

Preach Irish. I've been saved by my school loans and internships thus far, but I'm running into the same issues with people not wanting to hire me because I'll have my MA soon. I have one second interview Friday and I'm hoping it works out because I'm desperate and broke and don't qualify for unemployment.

[DrPhil]

If people are applying for jobs that they know they are overqualified for, they need to submit a resume` that does not reflect their overqualification. They need to essentially "play the part" and not speak or behave (I'm not talking about "dumbing down") in an overqualified manner. Wendy's will not hire someone with a PhD regardless of how broke and desperate that person is.