9
Do benefits discourage the unemployed from job searching?
Job seekers line up at a job fair held by National Career Fair in Los Angeles, Calif.
To view this content, Javascript must be enabled and Adobe Flash Player must be installed.
TEXT OF INTERVIEW
Steve Chiotakis: Right now we're going to ask today's Big Question: Does getting an unemployment check make someone less likely to look for a job? Well the Senate is expected to vote later today on the extension of unemployment benefits. Up to now, there haven't been enough votes to overcome a Republican filibuster. But they're going to try again today with a new Democratic senator from West Virginia being sworn in. Diane Lim Rogers is an economist with the Concord Coalition, a nonpartisan think tank, and she writes the blog Economistmom.com. She's with us live from northern Virginia. Good morning Diane.
Diane Lim Rogers: Hi Steve, thanks for having me.
Chiotakis: You got it. So before we get to the matter of the big question, there's the small matter -- is this extension measure going to pass?
Rogers: Well, it sounds like it, it sounds like they've convinced a couple of the Republican senators to come on board. So yeah, I think it is going to pass today.
Chiotakis: All right. So the debate has been mostly fiscal conservatives asking about whether jobless benefits discourage the unemployed from getting jobs. They get a check, they don't have to go
to work. What do you say?
Rogers: I think that might be a legitimate argument to make if the economy were in much better shape than it is. I mean the simple fact is there's just not enough jobs out there, the jobs aren't there to turn down. So I think the worry that benefits prevent people from looking is way overblown right now.
Chiotakis: These extension benefits, the extending of unemployment benefits, have happened in the past, right? Over and over and over again. Why did this one get such a look-through?
Rogers: Oh, well I think that this one, just because this recession has been very severe and we've had to spend a lot of money to help the recovery, and I think that some of the politicians are getting legitimately concerned about the level of deficit spending that's going on. The problem is that most of our deficit spending and the longer-term outlook has nothing to do with unemployment benefits. So I think it's just the level of the deficit has gotten so high that it's become a convenient thing to complain about when you really just don't like the idea of extending unemployment benefits.
Chiotakis: And so how do we pay for this? If it's not going to be paid for -- if that's the argument, that we're not going to be able to pay for this -- I mean what's the best way to make this move?
Rogers: Well, even though the Concord Coalition is for fiscal responsibility and we like small deficits or no deficits where possible, this is one area where I don't think it's necessary to actually pay for the benefits for this program. Because it's actually a very small amount of money, it's intended to be temporary, it is not what we're concerned about. And it would be much better to look for ways to pay for more permanent programs that we continue to deficit-finance.
Chiotakis: All right, economist Diane Lim Rogers with the Concord Coalition and Economistmom.com. We thank you.
Rogers: Thanks.
One of my relatives is on unemployment. She was a low wage earner and now works a part time job and makes sure not to earn enough to loose her unemployment. She has no desire to find a real job and is enjoying her vacation. It makes me sick.
@Isabella
True for those that did make 6 figures. Not true for those that did not. IIRC, the unemployment rate for those with Master's degrees is still pretty low.
The majority of people, though, don't have a college degree. Those people are literally fighting for McD's jobs at minimum wage (I wish I was exaggerating). It's those people, who truly do apply to anything but can't find anything in over a year, that the extension is aimed for. 100k a year won't gain very much from the 15.6k a year that UI gives so I highly doubt many are casually waiting for that dream job (some, yes.. many, no).
Too bad if you once made six figures and have a Masters or a PhD. Good grief! Times are different now and you have to roll with the punches and downsize your life! I worked in Biotech in Silicon Valley for 10 years and made six figures with a bachelors degree, now I work at any job I can get and make less than half that, but I'm not whining about it. Get some sense and stop acting so spoiled if employers won't hire you for "survival jobs" if you put down a higher degree, leave that info off your application! C'mon get some survival skills and stop acting like an entitled brat and you might get hired!
The only people who believe receiving unemployment discourages one from looking for a job are those who have never been unemployed, and either are politicians in the pocket of corporations who don't want to pay unemployment taxes, or those who don't need to work to support themselves.
Anyone who has to work for a living, and that has been unemployed, knows unemployment is not a living wage. It is only designed to help bridge you to your next job...and as was already stated, you have to be looking for a job to even qualify.
Outside of DC, it is not a left/right issue. Rather one of supporting your family, and I would wager there aren't many out of work Republicans who do not file for unemployment out of principle. In DC, it is a Republican issue as they are more blatantly in the pocket of big corporations, who would like nothing better than to not have to pay unemployment taxes.
Obviously many unemployed are feverishly looking for jobs. This is particularly true of individuals who were in mid or upper income levels with big mortgages & children enrolled in expensive schools. The same is not always the case with lower paying jobs or families with multiple incomes. My family owns a café. Daily I hear people counseling others about how to find companies that are not hiring in order to meet the “job hunting†requirements. They are very intentional about not looking for a job until their benefits run out. In addition many are working for cash under-the-table. My job is at a Fortune 50 company. Our incoming phones are full of people calling to make sure we’re not hiring before they come by with their “job search†documentation for us to sign. There isn’t an answer that meets everyone’s needs but we do indeed have a population that will not work until the well runs dry.
Lazy?
I am up til 3 am each and every day searching.
WHats the alternative?
No home, no ability then to search for a job, and no food = Rebel willing to kill, rob, and take what is with held.
Seriously!
In order to get unemployment you have to be looking.
WHAT MORON THINKS THIS IS BEING LAZY!
The idea that the unemployed are to blame for unemployment is insane. Five people for every open job is the only statistic we need to remember.
btw, if you're searching I've been hearing great job search advice on an internet radio show at www.jobtalkamerica.com
Unemployment pays, at most, a quarter of your former salary. And there's a cap so for high earners, it's even less. Living on less than a quarter, maybe even a fifth of your old salary would be just scraping by, if you are lucky. Otherwise, you start drawing down savings and even worse, your 401K after selling what you can on Craigslist.
That has been the experience of my friends who are now out, some who passed the deadline and a few who have used up their 99 weeks. They once made six figures, or close to it. That fact, their age and their qualifications (Masters for most, even a couple of Ph.D.'s) often shut down any dialog with possible empoyers for mere survival jobs.
