Wisconsin Legislature votes to end extra unemployment
SCOTT BAUER and TODD RICHMOND, Associated Press
June 9, 2021
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FILE - Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers speaks during a news conference outside Henderson Elementary School in Madison, Wis. Thursday, April 29, 2021. Unemployed people in Wisconsin would lose a $300-a-week federal bonus under a Republican-backed bill the GOP-controlled state Legislature plans to pass on Wednesday, June 9, 2021. However, Evers, a Democrat, has signaled that he will veto the proposal. (John Hart/Wisconsin State Journal via AP, File)John Hart/AP
MADISON, Wis. (AP) The Republican-controlled Wisconsin Legislature voted Wednesday to eliminate a $300-a-week federal bonus for unemployed people, a measure that Democratic Gov. Tony Evers has made clear he s likely to veto.
ablokhin/iStock(DENVER) Nearly 8,000 people in Colorado have applied for a state program that gives up to $1,600 in "incentive" payments to unemployed people who return to work full time. In the less than three weeks since the "Colorado Jumpstart" program was announced, the state's Department of Labor and Employment reported that it has received 7,953 claimants as of Monday. Colorado Jumpstart promises payments of $1,600 to those who are currently receiving state unemployment benefits or Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation benefits and return to work full time by May 29 and $1,200 payments for those who return by June 26. The initiative was part of an executive order signed by Gov. Jared Polis as COVID-19 restrictions eased and businesses struggled to bring their staff back. It is being funded by the Coronavirus Relief Fund, which is federal money stemming from the March 2020 CARES Act. Participants become eligible for the first half of their payment
Wisconsin Legislature votes to end extra unemployment
Published
MADISON, Wis. - The Republican-controlled Wisconsin Legislature voted Wednesday, June 9 to eliminate a $300-a-week federal bonus for unemployed people, a measure that Democratic Gov. Tony Evers has made clear he s likely to veto.
The federal payment, approved to help the unemployed during the coronavirus pandemic, is scheduled to end on Sept. 6. Twenty-five other states have already approved ending it early, saying it has exacerbated worker shortage problems.
That s the argument that Republicans, state and local chambers of commerce, trade groups and others made for passing the bill in Wisconsin, saying some people getting the equivalent of $16.75 an hour on unemployment are choosing to stay home. Evers last week voiced support for the $300 payment, saying those who advocate abolishing it don’t have any evidence that it’s behind the worker shortages.
Adrienne Roberts and Kristi Tanner
Detroit Free Press
Initial claims for regular unemployment benefits in Oklahoma increased last week compared with the week prior, the U.S. Department of Labor said Thursday.
New claims, a proxy for layoffs, rose to 9,364 in the week ending May 29, up from 8,360 the week before, the Labor department said.
There were 60,376 new claims in Oklahoma at the same time last year.
U.S. unemployment claims continued their downward slide. Claims for regular benefits dropped to 385,000 last week, down 20,000 claims from 405,000 the week prior on a seasonally adjusted basis.
Claims on a seasonally adjusted basis have now declined for five straight weeks. Last week marks the first time claims have fallen below 400,000 since before the pandemic.