Unemployment poll

[spectrumc01]

Hypothetical question?

You currently make 60K per year.
Your mortgage is $800 per month.
You loose your job.
Unemployment will pay you $1200.00 per month.
McDonalds will pay you $7.25 for part time work, 25 hr per week.

1) Do you quit your unemployment for the Mcdonalds job?
2) Do you stay on unemployment until it runs out? risking not getting the McDonalds job.

 

[Sallow]

3) Become the meat patties that go into the Big Mac.

yum.

 

[uscitizen]

You just get another 60K job.
Plenty of them around. If you supported Walker.
Ohh wait that was 80K or so.

but lets throw another curve in there say you take a full time at mickey D's and then get laid off from there. you have to refile on your unemployment and now you may draw as low as $100 per week depending on yoru state rules, but it will be at least no more than 800 per month.

Taking a lesser paying job and then losing it can ruin your unemployment benefits.
A friend of mine was making $35/hour. got laid off due to offshoring was laid off for 9 months drawing 1,200/mo or so I forget exactly.
He then took a $21/hr job and got laid off 5 months later. He then drew $400/mo unemployment.

 

[Shogun]

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Sp-VFBbjpE]YouTube - IT'S PEOPLE![/ame]

 

[Trajan]

Hypothetical question?

You currently make 60K per year.
Your mortgage is $800 per month.
You loose your job.
Unemployment will pay you $1200.00 per month.
McDonalds will pay you $7.25 for part time work, 25 hr per week.

1) Do you quit your unemployment for the Mcdonalds job?
2) Do you stay on unemployment until it runs out? risking not getting the McDonalds job.

at 99 weeks for some, its no decisions at all

 

[spectrumc01]

Hypothetical question?

You currently make 60K per year.
Your mortgage is $800 per month.
You loose your job.
Unemployment will pay you $1200.00 per month.
McDonalds will pay you $7.25 for part time work, 25 hr per week.

1) Do you quit your unemployment for the Mcdonalds job?
2) Do you stay on unemployment until it runs out? risking not getting the McDonalds job.

at 99 weeks for some, its no decisions at all

Exactly, it's hard to eat principals.

 

[uscitizen]

You mean the Right wingers and such are not declining their unemployment benefits?

 

[boedicca]

This thread puts the snarky hypocrisy of the lefties on display.

Somebody who has paid his taxes is expected not to receive the benefits of those taxes even though he qualifies for them - or to risk being accused of violating his principles.

They neglect to understand that perhaps the unemployment insurance would never have been needed in the first place if the economy had not been damaged with excessive Big Government programs which destroyed job creation.

I also find the poll choices in adequate, and choose another:

3) To live on my rainy day fund of savings while I conduct a job search. That's why I have money in an emergency account, separate from other investments.

 

[spectrumc01]

This thread puts the snarky hypocrisy of the lefties on display.

Somebody who has paid his taxes is expected not to receive the benefits of those taxes even though he qualifies for them - or to risk being accused of violating his principles.

They neglect to understand that perhaps the unemployment insurance would never have been needed in the first place if the economy had not been damaged with excessive Big Government programs which destroyed job creation.

I also find the poll choices in adequate, and choose another:

3) To live on my rainy day fund of savings while I conduct a job search. That's why I have money in an emergency account, separate from other investments.

* You can't tell people to get off their butts and take the McD's job if they have paid taxes in the last how many years? How much in taxes do you have to pay to get benefits? Obviously the people getting unemployment have qualified for them.
* Your right, had not Enron and Wall street destroyed this economy then these people would not need unemployment insurance. Yes the full name is "unemployment insurance".
* I'm glad you have a rainy day fund, some people don't, and for those your response falls under the heading of "Personal responsibility", or "Tough titties"?
Hope I wasn't too snarky.

 

[sparky]

This thread puts the snarky hypocrisy of the lefties on display.

Somebody who has paid his taxes is expected not to receive the benefits of those taxes even though he qualifies for them - or to risk being accused of violating his principles.

They neglect to understand that perhaps the unemployment insurance would never have been needed in the first place if the economy had not been damaged with excessive Big Government programs which destroyed job creation.

I also find the poll choices in adequate, and choose another:

3) To live on my rainy day fund of savings while I conduct a job search. That's why I have money in an emergency account, separate from other investments.

and by the grace of God goes Boedicca, who principals are obviously handed down from on high....

 

[FireFly]

How do you get a college graduate off of your front porch in the Obama economy???

You pay them for the pizza!

 

[waltky]

Hey all ya'll politicians an' CEO's - wake up!...

Sleepwalking through America’s unemployment crisis
May 23rd, 2011 - Editor's Note: Mohamed El-Erian, CEO and co-CIO of PIMCO, is the author of When Markets Collide. More on PIMCO’s Secular Forum can be found here. For more from El-Erian, visit Project Syndicate or follow it on Facebook and Twitter.

The scope and composition of unemployment in America is problem that has yet to be sufficiently recognized for its increasingly detrimental impact on the country’s social fabric, its economic potential and its already-fragile fiscal position and debt dynamics. Let us start with the facts:

- At 8.8% almost three years after the onset of the global financial crisis, America’s unemployment rate remains stubbornly (and unusually) high;

- Rather than reflecting job creation, much of the improvement in recent months (from 9.8% in November last year) is due to workers exiting the labor force, thus driving workforce participation to a multi-year low of 64.2%;

- If part-time workers eager to work full time are included, almost one in six workers in America are either under- or unemployed;

- More than six million workers have been unemployed for more than six months, and four million for over a year;

- Unemployment among 16-19 year olds is at a staggering 24%;

- With virtually no earned income and dwindling savings, the unemployed are least able to manage the current surge in gasoline and food prices, they are effectively shut off from credit, and many have mortgage debt that exceed the value of their homes.

MORE

 

[Wiseacre]

Hey all ya'll politicians an' CEO's - wake up!...

Sleepwalking through America’s unemployment crisis
May 23rd, 2011 - Editor's Note: Mohamed El-Erian, CEO and co-CIO of PIMCO, is the author of When Markets Collide. More on PIMCO’s Secular Forum can be found here. For more from El-Erian, visit Project Syndicate or follow it on Facebook and Twitter.

The scope and composition of unemployment in America is problem that has yet to be sufficiently recognized for its increasingly detrimental impact on the country’s social fabric, its economic potential and its already-fragile fiscal position and debt dynamics. Let us start with the facts:

- At 8.8% almost three years after the onset of the global financial crisis, America’s unemployment rate remains stubbornly (and unusually) high;

- Rather than reflecting job creation, much of the improvement in recent months (from 9.8% in November last year) is due to workers exiting the labor force, thus driving workforce participation to a multi-year low of 64.2%;

- If part-time workers eager to work full time are included, almost one in six workers in America are either under- or unemployed;

- More than six million workers have been unemployed for more than six months, and four million for over a year;

- Unemployment among 16-19 year olds is at a staggering 24%;

- With virtually no earned income and dwindling savings, the unemployed are least able to manage the current surge in gasoline and food prices, they are effectively shut off from credit, and many have mortgage debt that exceed the value of their homes.

MORE

And nobody seems to be focused on this, I do not understand why the pols on both sides of the aisle do not realize the first order of business should not be the debt/deficit, but instead the focus should be on jobs. The Dems failed to do sowhen they were in control, and now the GOP is doing the same thing. A pox on all of 'em.

 

[waltky]

Granny says, "Dat's right Wiseacre - a pox on `em all...

America's hidden unemployment problem
June 5, 2011 -- Want to know how the job market is doing? Just look at the disability rolls.

The Great Recession has created a growing underclass of millions of unemployed who are unlikely to ever re-enter the labor force. Instead, they're relying on government support that they qualify for because of health issues. There are 8.3 million workers receiving disability payments, an increase of 1.2 million, or 17% from when the recession began, according to the Social Security Administration.

While it might seem like more people are trying to file illegitimate claims, experts say that's not the case. The percentage of claims being approved is about the same as in a good economy. The real culprit: Workers with modest health problems are usually willing to take jobs when they can get them. But when they can't, they turn to the government. That's why the number of people who apply for -- and get approved for -- disability payments typically increases during bad economic times.

"There are people who, despite disability, are out there working when times are good," said Mark Lassiter, spokesman for the Social Security Administration, which runs the disability programs. "We've seen this increase in applications during other recessions. This jump is not due to fraud." And the rolls have been growing steadily for decades, since the government changed eligibility standards for the program in the early 1980s. Since then, the number of people receiving benefits has tripled. Today there are only about 16 active workers for every person collecting disability, compared to more than twice that 20 years ago.

High costs

See also:

Consumer pain adds to weak job growth
June 4, 2011: A dismal jobs report defied Wall Street's expectations Friday. But considering the beating consumers have taken recently, why was anyone surprised?

The American consumer is now feeling the cost of $4 gas and higher food prices, seeing their wages rise very little and still being held back by declining home values, which recently fell to their lowest level in nine years. "Remember, the consumer accounts for roughly 70% of the overall economy," said Kathy Bostjancic, director for macroeconomic analysis at The Conference Board. "If the consumer is showing reluctance, then that does not incentivize companies to build up or hire."

Prior to Friday, economists had expected a slightly weak jobs report for May, given what they believed would be temporary distortions because of supply-chain disruptions from Japan's earthquake, the lagging effect of higher energy prices and tornadoes in the South. Otherwise, company balance sheets looked solid and recent stock market declines were relatively minor. But did Wall Street underestimate the pain on Main Street?

Earlier this week, the Consumer Confidence Index -- a report compiled by the College Board -- fell to its lowest level since October, showing consumers are more apprehensive about the job market, their income and inflation. "Right now, we're in a tough patch for the consumer," Bostjancic said. "We're not yet near a double dip, but we're in a frustratingly slow recovery."

MORE

 

[rightwinger]

Burn down the house and live off the insurance

 

[American Horse]

Hypothetical question?

You currently make 60K per year.
Your mortgage is $800 per month.
You loose your job.
Unemployment will pay you $1200.00 per month.
McDonalds will pay you $7.25 for part time work, 25 hr per week.

1) Do you quit your unemployment for the Mcdonalds job?
2) Do you stay on unemployment until it runs out? risking not getting the McDonalds job.

I'd feel very motivated to spend all available time to finding something a lot closer to thirty an hour than seven-fifty. The mortgage means he's tied to a certain location with a house, but I'd go to a commissioned employment agency with an eye to moving (often an employer will pay moving expenses or buy-out a house); or just prospect in an area where opportunities are abundant. An intelligent person would be a fool to sell him self short and at the same time foreclose or bargain away his benefits for a pittance.

 

[MaggieMae]

Hypothetical question?

You currently make 60K per year.
Your mortgage is $800 per month.
You loose your job.
Unemployment will pay you $1200.00 per month.
McDonalds will pay you $7.25 for part time work, 25 hr per week.

1) Do you quit your unemployment for the Mcdonalds job?
2) Do you stay on unemployment until it runs out? risking not getting the McDonalds job.

I notice this is a pretty old thread, but I'll answer anyway. Usually a person has X-number of weeks within the alloted 26 weeks in which he/she can collect unemployment benefits to attempt to find work in the salary range he just left. Then, as time goes by, that becomes no longer true if the person still as not found work. S/he must pursue lower paying jobs, and also prove that he's done so. At least that's the way it works in my state.

 

[waltky]

Can't keep the ones already here employed, much less illegal aliens...

Federal data shows troubling unemployment, underemployment trends
06/10/2011 | Less than half of African-American men now have full-time jobs, and less than half of all white men will have full-time jobs in 2018, according to post-2000 trends hidden in federal population and workforce data.

There are roughly 14 million people formally labeled as unemployed, but “there’s probably 22 million to 23 million people who are unemployed, mal-employed or underemployed,” said Andrew Sum, an economics professor at Northeastern University in Boston. The hidden data shows that “we’ve got an overwhelming job gap that effects men more than women, less-educated men more then better-educated men, and the group aged 25 to 29 the most,” he said. One startling result, he said, is that only 43 percent of African-American men aged 18 to 29 have a full-time job.

This trend is obvious to T. Willard Fair, head of the Urban League of Greater Miami. He recently advertised two janitorial jobs via the unemployment office in his local town Liberty City. The city is 85 percent African-American, yet “only 2 of the 33 applicants were African-American,” he said. “The remainder were Hispanics or Haitians.” “People want to work, and if they can find jobs, they would take those jobs … [but] blacks are no longer even applying for those kinds of jobs, or have concluded they’re not going to get those jobs,” he said.

There’s recently been a run of bad news about unemployment trends. That’s damaged the White House’s poll ratings, but the federal government’s unemployment estimate — now 9.1 percent — counts only a portion of the nation’s non-working population. That’s because the 9.1 percent counts only people who have sought work in the last four weeks, and have failed to find employment of 35 hours or more per week. The count obscures the fact that many people have unwillingly ended their participation in the workforce.

The “employment population ratio” is a standard economic term that describes the percentage of work-ready people people who do have jobs. It ignores people who can’t work because they are in prison, nursing homes or full-time education. In practice, the ratio of working people can’t go much higher than 85 percent because some of the people who can work chose to retire, or to consume savings or to rely on government payments.

Read more: 50 Percent Unemployment | Immigration | Jobs Search | The Daily Caller

 

[waltky]

Obama gonna fix it...

Obama and 9.2% unemployment: 'A lot of work to do'
Jul 08, 2011 - President Obama said today's bad jobs reports "confirms what most Americans already know: We still have a long way to go and a lot of work to do to give people the security and opportunity that they deserve."

"We've always known that we'd have ups and downs on our way back from this recession," Obama said during brief remarks in the White House Rose Garden. After the Labor Department said the unemployment rate increased from 9.1% to 9.2% in June, Obama called on Congress to create construction jobs, speed patent approvals, approve free-trade agreements and extend this year's payroll tax cut into 2012.

Obama said the new report -- which cited paltry job growth of 18,000 in June -- proves the need for a deal to increase the nation's $14.3 trillion debt ceiling while reducing federal spending, the subject of high-profile negotiations with Republicans. "The American people need us to do everything we can to help strengthen this economy and make sure that we are producing more jobs," Obama said. Republicans called the spike in unemployment an indictment of Obama's economic policies.

"Today's report is more evidence that the misguided 'stimulus' spending binge, excessive regulations and an overwhelming national debt continue to hold back private-sector job creation in our country," said House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio. Obama and congressional Republicans are scheduled to discuss the debt limit and deficit reduction Sunday. The Republican presidential candidates weighed in on the jobs numbers (at Obama's expense), our On Politics blog reports.

MORE

See also:

Wages fall in sagging jobs market
July 8, 2011: Workers in this tight jobs market have a tough time getting higher wages.

Even those who are lucky enough to have jobs are finding they have less spending power these days. Workers made less per week in June than anytime over the past 18 months, when adjusted for inflation. The downward spiral in wages is yet another sign of how troubled the jobs market is, economists said. And it will also slow the pace of the recovery since Americans won't start buying more until they are earning more.

"It's a symptom of how weak hiring is," said Heidi Shierholz, an economist with the Economic Policy Institute, a left-leaning research group. "Employers know they don't have to pay substantial wage increases to keep workers." Average weekly earnings last month fell to $788.56. It's impossible to do exact inflation-adjusted comparisons with previous months until June's inflation rate is released, but June's earnings will be lower than they were in January 2010, Shierholz said.

Earnings are falling because employers are pulling back on hours, while keeping wages essentially flat. The average work week for all employees in the private sector fell to 34.3 hours in June, according to Labor Department data released Friday. Meanwhile, average hourly earnings decreased by 1 cent to $22.99.

The tight employment market means that people are competing to land or hold onto the few jobs that are out there. According to the June jobs report, the economy gained just 18,000 jobs last month, far weaker than expected. The unemployment rate rose to 9.2%. "There's no bargaining power in this economy," said Frank Levy, an economics professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

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