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Those reforms include shortening the length of time jobless workers can collect benefits and a provision that would require anyone collecting them to have a high school diploma
As Congress returns from the holiday recess, one of the most pressing items on its agenda will the two-month extension of jobless benefits enacted late last month. Read more
The numbers for people who have been out of work for 27 weeks or more and are still searching remains unchanged.
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The new unemployment numbers were released Friday by the US Bureau of Labor Statistics and on the surface the rate is unchanged at 9.5 percent. However, there's a lot that can be discerned about what's really going on by looking just below the surface. Read more
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Employers also must pay half of the 15.3 percent FICA tax (Social Security and Medicare combined). Though half of that 15.3 percent is paid by the employer and half by the employee, many employees have little idea that all of the FICA tax is, in reality, coming out of their pockets. Employers also must comply with a multitude of government mandates -- such as providing health insurance under President Obama's new plan -- that make them wary of hiring full-timers.
It could turn out to be a good thing.
According to CNNMoney.com, the traditional full-time job with benefits is being displaced by temporary or contract positions.
With unemployment high, you see, employers have their pick of skilled workers. Why hire full-timers and fund costly benefits when they can pay a flat hourly or monthly rate instead? Read more
The unemployment rate is holding steady at 9.7 percent, which is high but actually still good news.
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The new unemployment count is out for March and, lo and behold, we finally gained some jobs. There are 162,000 new positions above what had existed, out there in the work force according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. Read more
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The rate has doubled from 3.5 percent to 7 percent over a 20 year period, reported by Kate Strully.
Martha's Big Adventure - The Job Hunt
By Martha Randolph Carr Read more
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The number of American households who couldn't adequately sustain food for their family rose.
Going Hungry in America
By Martha Randolph Carr
The number of American households who couldn't adequately sustain food for their family rose from 13 million in 2007 to 17 million households in 2008, according to a new report by the Food and Drug Administration. The jump represents the highest number since the FDA started keeping track in 1995. Read more
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The number of newly laid-off workers filing claims for jobless benefits dropped last week.
WASHINGTON - The number of newly laid-off workers filing claims for jobless benefits dropped last week, and the number of people remaining on the rolls also fell, evidence that layoffs have eased.
Still, both figures remain above levels associated with a healthy economy, and analysts expect the unemployment rate to keep rising.
The Labor Department said Thursday that first-time unemployment claims fell to a seasonally-adjusted 570,000, down from an upwardly revised figure of 580,000 the previous week. Analysts expected a slightly larger drop to 565,000, according to Thomson Reuters. Read more
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Widespread job losses continued in May, pushing the economy toward a dubious achievements.
Job Outlook Still Bleak
By David Madland | June 5, 2009
Widespread job losses continued in May, pushing the economy toward a number of dubious achievements. Long-term unemployment is now at an all-time high, jobs have declined for a record number of consecutive months, work hours are the shortest since the Bureau of Labor Statistics began tracking the data, and many other indicators of labor market distress are at or near historic levels. Read more
