Tag Archives: unemployment

Chris from South Carolina used to work in an unemployment office. Then he was laid off. Here’s his warning:
You should know that Congress has let the emergency benefits lapse several times in the past few years and always when a break is scheduled for them. It happened last Easter and last Christmas. They don’t care about the unemployed. They take their holiday break and deal with it when they return to Washington.
We can’t assume Congress will renew unemployment in time for the millions who are hanging by a thread before extended benefits expire Dec. 31. That’s why we’re pulling out all the stops. More than 2,000 jobless workers, activists and clergy are on Capitol Hill, right now—demanding a clean and immediate extension of emergency unemployment benefits. Thousands more are in district offices across the country.

As we gather on Capitol Hill and at district offices, activists across the country are flooding Congress with messages.

Add your voice: Help make sure the voices of America’s jobless can’t be ignored by Congress. http://act.aflcio.org/salsa/track.jsp?v=2&c=NNlhbPw0buvN0Kq3T7aq%2F2C84X%2BQ3emC

Diane from Michigan worked in the newspaper industry and is now unemployed. Here’s how she describes her situation:

Every job opening has hundreds, if not thousands, of applicants. It is almost impossible to get a job—especially if you also face age discrimination. Retraining is too costly. Meanwhile, we are hanging on by a thread. No health insurance….My current unemployment benefits are the only thing saving me from the street. I have faced food insecurity for the first time.

We must not let people like Diane be forgotten.

Make Congress hear the stories and see the faces of jobless workers. Contact Congress now and demand an immediate, clean extension of emergency unemployment benefits.

Momentum is building—but we can’t take the passage of emergency unemployment aid for granted.

Obstructionists like House Speaker John Boehner—who has nearly absolute control over what comes up for a vote in the U.S. House of Representatives—continue to block a clean, immediate extension of emergency jobless aid. There’s no excuse for that. Especially when our economy is so bad and budget cuts in our communities are so dire.

Chris, a now unemployed unemployment office worker, asks a powerful question: “Don’t they realize they work for us?”

Tell Congress: “You work for us. Renew emergency unemployment aid now.”

Will obstructionists like Speaker Boehner really let benefits lapse yet again, take a vacation, come back and play partisan games?

Will the obstructionists let families get thrown out of their homes? Will they force kids to go hungry to extract cuts and concessions that hurt our most vulnerable people?

Send a clear message now: “No help for the jobless? No vacation for Congress!”

Thank you for all the work you do.

In Solidarity,

Richard L. Trumka
President, AFL-CIO

P.S. Our unemployment stories website has been covered by the media in publications lawmakers read while in Washington, D.C., including The Washington Post and The Hill—plus papers they read at home.

But we need your help to make sure every lawmaker feels the heat and sees these stories. Take action now.

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Unemployment Insurance – Share Your Story

12/09/2011 Nativegrl77

Unemployment Insurance – Share Your Story

Unemployment benefits are a vital lifeline for many Washington workers who are jobless through no fault of their own. These programs help them continue to put food on their table, gas in their car, and pay their bills while they look for work.

Federal unemployment programs will begin to expire at the end of this year.

In fact, unless Congress acts to extend these vital benefits, approximately 100,000 Washington residents and more than two million Americans will be cut off from federal unemployment compensation by February 2012.

Over the coming weeks I will be pushing my colleagues in the Senate to work quickly to extend unemployment benefits before the end of the year.

But I need your help.

I consider it to be my job to be your voice in the Senate. So tell me your stories. Send me your pictures and your videos. Show me how inaction by Congress to extend these benefits would most impact your life.

While the unemployment rate dropped to 8.6% in November, we’ve still got a lot of work to do to get our economy back on track. But I can promise you that it will be your stories and experiences that will guide me as I fight for workers in Washington state.

Your Story…

Have a photo or video that tells your story? Please share it by using this form.

Send an e-mail with your photo or video link to: yourstory@murray.senate.gov

You can also Tweet your photo to @PattyMurray using #extendUI.

Note: Selected stories, photos, or videos may be used by Senator Murray online or in her public remarks. We will include only your first name and hometown. Your full name and email will never be posted online or provided without your permission.

Their Story…

I have heard from so many workers across Washington state—and I know they aren’t looking for a hand-out, they just want their government to be there for them the way it was there for generations of workers before them. They are just looking for a hand up—some support so they can keep food on their families’ tables while looking for work, and the resources and tools they need to skill-up, train-up, and get back on the job. Here are a few of their stories:

“I got laid off my job in April 2011. My unemployment insurance will run out at the end of this year. Unless Congress acts swiftly, federal unemployment insurance programs will expire December 31, leaving me with no benefits starting January 2012. I have two small children, three and five years old. Due to my employment status, we have to tell them that we will only be able to give them one Christmas gift this year. We also had to tell them we couldn’t go see the “Disney on Ice” show because it was too expensive. Please renew the full federal Unemployment Insurance program through 2012 now! The benefit I get will help pay for our mortgage while my wife’s salary, who works for Macy’s, covers our day to day expenses – including providing for our children. I have been looking for a job for nine months now but there are not many jobs out there.”

– Jose Villanueva, Seattle

“I am writing to urge your support for an extension of the federal unemployment benefits. I am receiving these benefits right now and have enrolled in a special program to start my own business. Through the SEAP program, I have become my own job creator. These funds, along with my own savings, have allowed me to meet my expenses while starting my financial education business, Twight Financial Education. As a fee-only financial planner, I work with people who want to know more about how to handle and invest their money. Sometimes, we must work on getting them from paycheck to paycheck first. You know that while you have been in office, the financial world has become more complex, even as employee benefits have diminished. Without these UI benefits, I would not have been able to keep my business going. I have not yet made a profit, but expect to next year. I have momentum now and your support for these benefits is critical for me and many others.”

– Dana Twight, Seattle

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AFL – CIO

12/07/2011 Nativegrl77

AMAZING

You’ve got to see this—these stories from jobless workers blew us away.See the stories, share them and add your voice.

You need to check out this website, right now.

It’s a powerful reminder of the real faces behind America’s sobering unemployment statistics. It has real pictures and stories from job-hunters and impacted people from all walks of life—from your state and from every state.

I hope you’ll take a minute to look at these powerful stories, share them and add your own.

If Congress fails to act by Dec. 31, extended unemployment insurance will expire for millions.

We never forget these are real people who face the prospect of going hungry and getting thrown out of their homes soon after the holidays if Congress fails to act. Many of us have been there before—or have friends and family who have.

Even though obstructionists in Congress are willing to ignore our joblessness crisis, we refuse to let these stories get brushed under the rug.

Click here to see and share the stories and faces behind America’s joblessness crisis.

Then, share our website on Facebook and Twitter and forward this message to all your friends.

These stories and pictures won’t just live on a website. We’ll share them with the media, hand-deliver them to Congress during our massive day of action on Dec. 8 and promote them widely on the Internet.

If callous members of Congress think they can sit back and allow unemployment aid to expire while they play political games, they’re wrong. With your help we’re going to force them to see this crisis head-on—with real faces of real people who are jobless and struggling in this brutal economy.

See these stories, share them and add your voice.

In Solidarity,

Manny Herrmann
Online Mobilization Coordinator, AFL-CIO

P.S. It’s not just people who are unemployed right now who have stories to tell. Millions of others do, too.

Maybe you’ve been jobless in the past and relied on unemployment benefits to get through. Or you’ve seen firsthand how much unemployment hurts your community and America—and how much unemployment aid helps. Or maybe you can write a brief statement of support for the jobless or urge Congress to act—even in just one to two sentences.

Together, we’re creating a visual display of the impact of unemployment that will be too powerful to ignore. See and share stories and statements in your state and across America. Then, add your own.

To find out more about the AFL-CIO, please visit our website at www.aflcio.org.

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AFL – CIO

10/07/2011 Nativegrl77

68,842 bridges across America need work. So do America’s unemployed workers.

Tell Congress: These bridges need work, and so do America’s jobless workers.

In America, 68,842 bridges are deficient—and 282,672,680 vehicles cross
those bridges every day. Meanwhile, 9.1 percent of Americans are
jobless.

With so many people out of work and so many bridges and other pieces of
critical infrastructure in need of work, there’s a simple solution:
Congress must pass legislation putting jobless Americans to work fixing
critical infrastructure—bridges, schools, roads, ports and more.

Tell
your members of Congress: America is ready to get to work on our
bridges, transit, rail, airports, highways, ports, schools and the rest
of our failing infrastructure.

These projects don’t just create good jobs for the people who do the
original work—though that’s a big part of why they are important right
now. They also make our economy perform better in the long term by
increasing productivity. And they make America a better, safer place to
live.

Immediate work on America’s
crumbling infrastructure is a start. But we also need to pass a fully
funded surface transportation reauthorization and start now on even
bigger projects—world-class communications and energy systems,
high-speed rail and other infrastructure we need to be competitive in
the 21st century.

Tell
Congress: We need to fix our broken infrastructure and get started on
even bigger projects, too—the world-class communications and energy
systems, high-speed rail and other infrastructure we need to be
competitive in the 21st century.

I haven’t been to China, though I hope to go soon. But I am told that when you fly to Shanghai,
you land in a brand-new airport, you have high-speed broadband access
from the moment you arrive and you can get on a high-speed train in the
arrival terminal that will take you directly to downtown Shanghai at
speeds faster than 100 miles per hour.

This just isn’t available in any U.S. city. But we can change that. We
can meet these standards—and beat them. But only if our leaders rise to
the challenge.

Thank you for all the work you do.

In Solidarity,

Richard L. Trumka

President, AFL-CIO

P.S. In tough times, America has come together and put America back to work by building and rebuilding our infrastructure. But so far, the Republicans won’t do it.
That’s why we’re taking the pressure to every individual member of
Congress today—highlighting just how much work there is to be done and
how many jobless Americans are ready to get to work.

Tell
your members of Congress: America is ready to get to work. Let’s get
started on our bridges, transit, rail, airports, highways, ports,
schools and the rest of our failing infrastructure.

To find out how many bridges need work in your state and your state’s unemployment rate, click here.

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Breaking News: More Women in Poverty Than Ever, Tell Congress to Act on President’s Jobs Plan

09/14/2011 Nativegrl77

Trust me: it’s no fun being the bearer of bad news.

I recently told you that since the recession officially ended, women’s unemployment rates have actually increased. But that’s not the only grim reality: today the Census Bureau released new data, and NWLC’s analysis finds that record numbers of women are living in poverty — and extreme poverty.

WWW.NWLC.ORG

With two-thirds of women in the role of head of their household or a contributor to their family’s income, it’s more important than ever to make sure that unemployed women have a chance to get back to work. That’s why President Obama’s plan for job creation, submitted to Congress this week, has come at such a critical time for women and their families. Congress needs to act quickly on these proposals to address the immediate deficit facing this country — the jobs deficit. The numbers released today by the Census Bureau underscore the urgency.

Urge your Members of Congress to act on job creation NOW!

www.nwlc.org

Here are just a few important findings from the new data:

The rise in women living in poverty: Over 17 million women lived in poverty in 2010, including more than 7.5 million in extreme poverty, with an income below half of the federal poverty line — both all-time highs. The poverty rate among women rose to 14.5 percent in 2010 from 13.9 percent in 2009, the highest rate in 17 years. The poverty rate among single mothers climbed to 40.7 percent in 2010; more than half of all poor children lived with single mothers.
The wage gap: The wage gap for women remained as wide as in 2009. Women working full-time year-round were paid only 77 cents for every dollar paid to their male counterparts.
Uninsured women: The rate of women without health insurance rose to 19.7 percent in 2010 from 19.2 percent in 2009 — the highest rate in more than a decade. A total of 19 million women were uninsured in 2010 — an increase of more than 0.5 million women from the previous year.

You can get more details from our press release and check back later this week for our further analysis of what these new numbers mean for women and their families.

WWW.NWLC.ORG

Tell your Members of Congress to take action on the President’s proposals to create jobs, grow the economy, and alleviate hardship for women and families. And tell them not undercut job-creation measures by cutting funding for vital public services, which would destroy jobs and make it harder for struggling families to make ends meet.The President issued the call to action and submitted his plan to Congress. Now it’s up to Congress to act!Sincerely,