State-unemployment services punish those who are honestly trying to return to the workforce. I speak from experience. To make a long story short, I recently had my unemployment benefits cut because [last year] I worked a couple of temporary jobs, which did not pay that well. I had hoped they might turn into permanent positions but they did not. Yet I ended up working too much. When they recalculated my benefits for the new year, they cut my benefits by two thirds. Not only that but they say that they overpaid me for two weeks this year and now I must pay them back over $600 dollars.
They are forcing me to do this while I am unemployed by either taking half the benefits that I will now receive or making me pay $60 a month should I work any kind of jobs and file no unemployment during that time. I need all I can right now for food, housing and bills.
By doing this, the Employment Security Commission is punishing me (and, I am sure, many other honest people who are trying to return to the workforce). Their actions say to me that if you are on unemployment that you would be better off not finding any job until you are at the end of your benefits and extensions or till you find permanent work that you can live on. Do not take just any work to try and get off unemployment, because if the job does not work out and you go back to unemployment, you will be penalized. You will be worse off than before! This is the message that they send.
Honesty does not pay when it comes to dealing with the government. Instead honesty is punished, and because of their actions, my family and I could be homeless, if at the end of the temporary job that I am now on does not become permanent. Thank you North Carolina ESC for possibly making an honest family homeless for trying to do the right thing.
— Joseph Dortch
Fletcher
You mean you don’t agree with those such as Arizona Republican John Kyl, who, in defending Jim Bunning’s obstruction of unemployment compensation extension and COBRA health care subsidies, said yesterday that “unemployment compensation is a disincentive for them to seek new work?”
Dionysis – Joseph clearly stated that the way unemployment benefits are set up right now creates a disincentive to work. This is a perfect example. I’ve been in the exact same situation. There needs to be reform.
” Joseph clearly stated that the way unemployment benefits are set up right now creates a disincentive to work. This is a perfect example. I’ve been in the exact same situation. There needs to be reform.”
Yes, I understand that. There is clearly something wrong when someone tries to earn some money by their own efforts and is penalized for it; that must be reformed. However, as I understand Kyl’s comments, he was claiming that providing any unemployment compensation was tantamount to killing the work ethic and fostering a class of lazy people living large on little more than $200 per week. He also was against extending COBRA health insurance continuation with the recently extended subsidies.
When welfare was reformed, it encouraged people to go to work and they did.
Times are different now with the recession, welfare was reformed in a booming economy, but the concept has a ring of truth to it. Human’s don’t do well if you give them too much for free.
[b]Human’s don’t do well if you give them too much for free.[/b]
Absolutely. Although i take exception with the idea that anything under our current welfare program could be considered ‘too much’. Generally speaking, it’s barely enough, if that.
i also suspect that those who call welfare ‘too much’ are not willing to deal with the real life repercussions of the programs being cut overnight, when people will resort to whatever means necessary to feed themselves and their children.
But i do agree the program is deeply flawed and needs to be seriously repaired.
Bravo Joseph! He’s not saying it is too much, he is saying it is not enough for those who made an effort and took temporary, low paying jobs like he did, and power to him.