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Unemployment

Generous Unemployment Benefits Are Not the Problem—Poverty Wages are

Business interests maintain their goal is merely to fill the slots with qualified candidates, but in fact they aim to fashion a cadre of workers who will accept, even actively seek, any job, no matter how demeaning or dangerous.
John Buell ·
unemployment-benefits
White House National Economic Council Director speaks during a press briefing

Biden Faces Backlash Over 'Shameful' Capitulation to GOP Governors as They End Unemployment Lifelines

Jake Johnson, staff writer ·

A person files an application for unemployment benefits on April 16, 2020 in Arlington, Virginia. (Photo: Olivier Douliery/AFP via Getty Images)

There Is Zero Justification for GOP Ending $300 Federal Unemployment Boost

David Cooper ·

A server clears a table as patrons dine outdoors at Gloria's Cocina Mexicana in Ontario, California on December 5, 2020. (Photo: Watchara Phomicinda/MediaNews Group/The Press-Enterprise via Getty Images)

There's No Restaurant Worker Shortage, Only a Shortage of Safe Jobs With Adequate Pay

John Buell ·

Volunteers fill boxes of food at an event sponsored by the Second Harvest Food Bank of Central Florida

'Attempting to Starve People Back to Work': Anger Grows as GOP Governors Cut Off Jobless Benefits

Jake Johnson, staff writer ·

From left to right: Reps. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.), Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.), and Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) speak to supporters of then-Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) at a campaign event in Clive, Iowa, on January 31, 2020. (Photo: Jim Watson/AFP via Getty Images)

House Dems Push for Infrastructure Package 'That Truly Meets This Historic Moment'

"Given the scale of our unemployment, caregiving, healthcare, climate, and inequality crises," nearly 60 lawmakers wrote, "we urge our colleagues in Congress to pursue a larger upfront investment."

Kenny Stancil, staff writer ·

Sanders Urges Labor Secretary to Protect Jobless Benefits as GOP Governors Race to Cut Them Off
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) speaks during the confirmation hearing for Secretary of Energy nominee Jennifer Granholm on January 27, 2021 in Washington, D.C.
jakeMay 13, 2021
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) speaks during the confirmation hearing for Secretary of Energy nominee Jennifer Granholm on January 27, 2021 in Washington, D.C.
The Vermont senator warned that many workers "will be forced into poverty" if Republican leaders are permitted to end emergency unemployment benefits.
A recent poll found that a quarter of women claimed they were financially worse off a year into the pandemic. (Photo: Getty/Stock Photo)

Mother’s Day Tears and the Fierce Prophetic Vision of Poor Women

This past year-plus has laid bare the pressures, burdens, and violence that women, especially poor women and women of color, face every day.

Rev Dr Liz Theoharis ·

A 'Now Hiring' sign is posted in front of a Popeye's restaurant on February 04, 2021 in Miami, Florida. The Labor Department announced weekly unemployment claims declined to 779,000 last week. (Photo: Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

Dear Employers: People Don't Want to Work for Starvation Wages

It’s not that people don’t want to work—it's that they don’t want to work for so little.

Rebekah Entralgo ·

Activists in the restaurant and service industries gather for Raise the Wage Act rally on the National Mall March 8, 2021 in Washington, DC. Activists called on Congress "to pass the Raise the Wage Act in its entirety, however it must be done." (Photo: Win McNamee/Getty Images)

We Don't Have a Labor Shortage in the US, We Have a Crisis of Low Wages

Don't easily believe claims that there's a lack of people to fill jobs. What’s really going on is that employers aren't offering workers a living wage.

Heidi Shierholz ·

Food delivery driver Jorge Vargas honks a horn while driving his vehicle in a car caravan strike by fast food workers and their supporters on February 9, 2021 in Los Angeles. (Photo: Frederic J. Brown/AFP via Getty Images)

Pay a Living Wage or 'Flip Your Own Damn Burgers': Progressives Blast Right-Wing Narrative on Jobs

"If one in four recipients are making more off unemployment than they did working, that's not an indictment of $300 a week in UI benefits. It's an indictment of corporations paying starvation wages."

Kenny Stancil, staff writer ·

Derrick Davis, a member of West Virginia New Jobs Coalition, hangs up signage during a community gathering and job fair on April 8, 2021 in Charleston, West Virginia.

As Hiring Undershoots Expectations, Biden Urged to Go Big With $10 Trillion Jobs Plan

"Millions of people are out of work, and the unemployment rate is rising. The real risk isn't doing too much—it's doing too little."

Jake Johnson, staff writer ·

While the American Rescue Plan is a vital first step, it will not by itself lift children in America out of poverty. (Photo: Fibonacci Blue/Flickr/cc)

Eradicating Child Poverty Beyond the Pandemic

The economic impact of the pandemic has created an opportunity for the federal government to reconsider its traditional responses to poverty and unemployment.

Johnisha Levi ·

Immigrants staged rally and march for immigrants rights and commemorate death from Covid-19 pandemic on Times Square. Protesters demand equal right for undocumented immigrant workers and commemorate death of undocumented immigrants from Covid-19 disease and requested financial relief the same way as citizen received from government. (Photo: Lev Radin/Pacific Press/LightRocket via Getty Images)

New York to Offer Undocumented Migrants Up to $15,600 in Pandemic Relief

"Today, our work today has been recognized," said one undocumented worker and organizer. "Our dignity has been recognized, and our dignity has been lifted by passing this fund."

Brett Wilkins, staff writer ·

The benefits of the ARP will continue to be captured in coming months. (Photo: Getty/Stock Photo/Maskot)

Strong Job Growth in March as Vaccine Distribution Expands and the American Rescue Plan Ramps Up

Even at this pace, it could take more than a year to dig out of the total jobs shortfall. However, today's number is certainly a promising sign for the recovery.

Elise Gould ·