A victory! Unemployment Insurance has been extended for the rest of 2012. Republicans had to cave in due to pressure from constituents all around the country. There are many positive aspects (and a few negative) about the extension that we discuss below. But for now, take a moment to congratulate yourself on a job well done!

The good, the bad and the ugly of the extension

The bill includes some cuts to unemployment insurance: Previously, unemployed workers could receive up to 86, 93 or 99 weeks of unemployment benefits in most states (depending on unemployment rate). This included 26 weeks of regular (state) benefits, 4 tiers of federal Emergency Unemployment Compensation of 20,14,13 and 6 weeks, and 20 weeks of Extended Benefits (EB).

Under the new law: 

• Benefits remain almost the same through the end of May.
• June 1: The EB 20-week program will end in almost all states, cutting 20 weeks. Tier 4 (6 weeks) will be eliminated for states below 9% unemployment, and tier 3 (13 weeks) for states below 7%.
• September 1: Tier 3 will be cut from 13 weeks to 9 weeks. Those 4 weeks will be added to tier 4 – but only for those states qualifying for tier 4, ie, with unemployment over 9%.

The bill is a lot better than the original House bill passed by Republicans in December. This was a hard-won victory – it is also one with a bitter aftertaste.  The AFL-CIO did not support the bill in its final form, because of the bill’s benefit cuts and attacks on government workers.

Details of what else is good and bad can be found at the People’s World and from the National Employment Law Project. For the ugly, the drug-testing we talked about last week still exists in the final bill. Oh, and our last word on why Gov. Scott of Florida may be so interested in drug-testing so many people – one of the more popular services at Solantic, the urgent care chain co-founded by Scott, is drug testing.

Education and unemployment: Is there a connection?

The Huffington Post has an article on unemployment rates broken down by education level in this article. Even though the statistics show that college-educated workers are less likely to be unemployed, many of the 99ers are people with college degrees, as shown in a powerful segment on 60 Minutes last Sunday. 

Unemployment news from around the country

• Washington State: The Unemployed Nation Hearings, a two-day event scheduled for March 30-31, 2012, will air testimony from a wide range of unemployed people about their experiences. More info from the University of Washington here and job creation legislation introduced in WA can be found here.
• Michigan: This article (PDF) points to tax changes taking place here and across the country: job cutting austerity and growing insecurity for low income as well as tax breaks for corporations.
• New York: HERE Arts Center and Working Theater in collaboration with Occupy Wall Street culture groups and the NYC Central Labor Council are planning The Line (PDF of flyer) for Tuesday, March 6, 2012 at 8:15AM. The Line will be the world’s longest unemployment line stretching over three miles along Broadway, from the bull at Wall Street to Times Square.
• Employment in the construction market is way down.
• Information on unemployment rates and benefits around the country.

Please make sure to visit the People’s World online for the best in worker’s news! Promote the stories on Facebook and Twitter and other social media sites.

Two other good resources: UnemployedWorkers.org and Unemployed Nation.

PLUS! Check out the new weneedjobsnotcuts.com for People’s World jobs stories aggregator.

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