AWF Will Key Vote Against Unemployment Insurance Extension
Today, members of the US House will be asked to vote on two pieces of legislation that contain unemployment insurance extensions – H.R. 3326, the Fiscal Year 2010 Department of Defense Appropriations Act, and HR 2847, the Democrat “Jobs” Bill..
Economists agree that extending UI encourages unemployed workers to stay out of work longer to collect benefits; encourages employers to wait longer to rehire laid-off workers; and does relatively little to increase consumption.
According to James Sherk at The Heritage Foundation:
- Subsidizes and Extends Unemployment
- Extending either the amount or the duration of UI benefits increases the length of time that workers remain unemployed
- UI benefits subsidize unemployment. They reduce the incentive unemployed workers have to search for new work and to make difficult choices--such as moving or switching industries--to begin a new job
- Roughly one-third of workers receiving UI benefits find work immediately once their benefits expire.
- Economic research shows that extending UI benefits from 26 weeks to 46 weeks increases the average duration of unemployment by approximately three weeks
- Reduces Other Income
- Families respond to unemployment benefits by reducing other income. Wives’ earnings fall by between 36 and 73 cents for each dollar of UI benefits married men receive
Expanding UI will increase the duration of unemployment!
AWF WILL KEY VOTE Against HR 3326 & HR 2847
Comments (2)
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Well done AWF. Unemployment benefits subsidize unemployment. If there are people who need help in these times, they need to get help from churches, local charities, and other groups--not the US government.
>> Jeffrey Hosten December 16, 2009 16:54 pm
It would be terribly irresponsible to extend unemployment benefits. Employers need to create jobs so Americans can get back to work, extending UI benefits does nothing to encourage either of these, vital, steps of a recovery
>> Jamie December 18, 2009 18:10 am
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