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Friday, January 30, 2009

Economy A Little Good News

Posted by Eli Sanders on Fri, Jan 30, 2009 at 9:05 AM

On a day when the economic news is all about America's GDP shrinking significantly (even if not quite as significantly as feared) how about a little good economic news? Or, at least, some good news for the unemployed and nervously-employed.

Governor Gregoire, as you may have heard, wants to fatten the unemployment checks in Washington State by using a chunk of the $4 billion that's been stored up in our state's unemployment trust fund. Her proposal would amount to about a $45/week increase in unemployment checks—which, considering the average unemployment check was $350/week in this state last year, is a considerable increase. House Speaker Frank Chopp wants to go the governor one better and raise the minimum unemployment benefit a Washingtonian might receive. (From $129/week to about $150/week.)

For those just starting to pay attention to unemployment benefits as the job losses in our region mount, here are the basics: they're keyed to the amount of money you've been making, and the weekly payments currently range from $129 to $541 a week.

Want to figure out how much you'd make in unemployment insurance if you lose your job? Here's a handy calculator. Add $45 per week if you're feeling confident (which I would say you should be) that the state legislature will pass an increase in unemployment insurance payments this session.

Comments (12) RSS

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It might be a little more helpful if they used the money to increase staff at the state's unemployment insurance offices. Currently telephone hold times are hour-plus and decisions on benefit eligibility are taking 4-6 weeks.

Increased staffing at the UI offices would have a two-fold benefit: it would free up time for job seekers to seek jobs and it would EMPLOY MORE PEOPLE!!!

Posted by DOUG. on January 30, 2009 at 9:29 AM

$471, here I come! I'll just drink my wine out of boxes from now on.

Posted by heywhatsit on January 30, 2009 at 9:30 AM

This is probably the most pragmatic thing that any government at any level can do now. Instead of trying to spend our way out, or decrease taxes, just accept that more people are going to be unemployed regardless just because the demand for labor is going down and give them enough to ride out the storm.

Posted by Accept the inevitable and prepare accordingly on January 30, 2009 at 9:30 AM

I know someone who is one of the WaMu layoffs. He is making more in unemployment than I am working 40 hours a week at a decent office job at the UW. I hate him.

Posted by disgruntled on January 30, 2009 at 9:36 AM

This isn't even good economic news. This is a sop thrown to the currently jobless that runs the risk of reducing benefits to the future jobless AND pushing a tax cut for businesses that they OPPOSE (because they fear they'll be taxed more in the future to make up potential shortfalls likely to come from raiding the fund now).

Basically this is a crass move by Gregoire to try to appease her critics without doing the actually hard work of pushing for tax reform (income tax on those making over $200k, reduce sales tax to spur economy) and deficit spending to keep state tax cuts from making the economy worse. She has no vision beyond her next election. Her ideas for keeping this recession from turning into a depression are the same old quick fixes (now dwarfed by the size of the budget shortfall), along with buck passing in the hopes that Obama will save her. This is not the change we need!

Posted by Trevor on January 30, 2009 at 9:37 AM

How about extending unemployment? Six months is an insult in this economy and it's the worst system in the first world.

Posted by keshmeshi on January 30, 2009 at 10:58 AM

BREAKING: Congress to purchase $700 billion in Mega Millions tickets at Virginia 7-11.

"I feel really good about this one," stated House Majority Leader Nancy Pelosi, "our luck is changing and all of our nation's fiscal woes will be solved after tonight's drawing. And anyways, it's more likely to pay off than those Wall Street bailouts. Those were just fucking ripoffs," Pelosi added.

Posted by Original Andrew on January 30, 2009 at 11:52 AM

@6: Given my druthers I'd prefer that they would extend the benefits.

I talked to a really nice lady from the unemployment office on the phone today -- wait time about 20 minutes. She warned me that I might get a busy signal while calling to file my weekly claim because the system is so overloaded. It's a little terrifying.

Posted by Jigae on January 30, 2009 at 1:45 PM

Hot damn, a pay raise!

And for the record, one of the first "stimulus" packages included extending unemployment. Who signed that one? Why George W. Bush of course! Thanks George, that's the one thing you did for me in 8 years! Does it make up for everything else? Not even close.

Posted by gillsans on January 30, 2009 at 2:05 PM

That site is a joke, right?
No wonder no one trusts the government. Fuck em all.

Posted by Lose-Lose on January 30, 2009 at 2:59 PM

Unemployment is a joke. The people there use any excuse to deny benefits, even if you actually look for work. I only took benefits once, and they kept trying to get me to go to job fairs that had nothing in my industry and conflicted with the little part-time temporary work I could find. The woman who told me snottily that unemployment is a "voluntary" program got an earful out of me. It isn't voluntary for me to pay INTO the system for 15 years before trying to get help. Fucking thing is broken.

Posted by KJ on January 30, 2009 at 3:46 PM

Does no one see the real foolishness of this idea?!?

I'm collecting unemployment at the moment and as much as I'd love to get more money (god knows I could use it!) even I think it's unwise to tap the reserves of the Unemployment Trust Fund right now! Do these idiots really think this is the end of the rainy days?!?

"It's all going to be sunshine and roses from here on out, so let's go ahead and spend the reserves, cuz it's not like anyone is going to be unemployed a year from now, right?"

Maybe if we stop calling it a recession and admit we're on our way into a depression some people will pull thier heads out.

The math really isn't that hard here, boys and girls:

The fund gets it's money from a portion of working people's paychecks. The fund has a reaserve because for the last few years the cash coming it from workers has been more than the outlay to non-workers. Right now the number of workers is dropping dramaticly (i.e. less cash coming in) while the number of UI claims is going through the roof (i.e. much more outlay). Put that all together and pretty quickly we're going to spend down the reserve just on regular unemployment payments, let alone if we start giving it away even faster!

If this goes through, just hope you lose your job soon!

(Before the fund runs dry and yer outta work, fucked-and-outta-luck too.)

Posted by Timrr on January 30, 2009 at 5:24 PM