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Some Laid-Off Workers Are Being Turned Away as Unemployment Claims Surge

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3 years ago

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  • In the wake of the coronavirus outbreak, unemployment claims have surged by 33% in just one week, with 281,000 people applying for benefits last week alone.
  • Economists estimate that the number will increase to one million by the end of the month.
  • The massive surge in applications has resulted in unemployment websites crashing and hours-long wait times over the phone.
  • Because of restrictive criteria in several states, many of those impacted are now learning that they aren’t eligible to receive benefits.

Coronavirus Leads to Mass Layoffs

The United States Labor Department reported Thursday that 281,000 people applied for unemployment benefits last week, a massive surge of 33% from the previous week.

Economists expect the situation to get much worse, predicting more than a million people are on track to lose their jobs by the end of the month.

But given current events, that number is not necessarily surprising. Stocks have been plummeting and a lot of the economy is grinding to a standstill. On top of that, more and more businesses have closed their doors since the outbreak of COVID-19 in the U.S. Some companies, like Marriott, are furloughing tens of thousands of employees. 

All of that has put a massive strain on unemployment offices, with many people being put on hold for hours at a time. On Monday alone, so many people were trying to file for unemployment benefits in states like New York, Oregon, and New Jersey that their websites crashed.

While those technical issues are partly because of how fast unemployment is rising, they’re also a result of many state offices not expecting such a rapid surge in unemployment claims. Reportedly, many have low levels of staffing.

In fact, the surge in unemployment has been so fast that it’s on pace to do in a number of weeks what it took the 2008 Recession months to do.

Some People Are Told They Don’t Qualify for Unemployment

Along with hours-long wait times and trying to navigate broken websites, many people have recounted horror stories after learning they don’t qualify for benefits in their state.

In an interview with The Washington Post, 30-year-old Army vet Sean McGuire said he lost his job as a dishwasher in Portland because of the coronavirus. 

“I was on hold with the Oregon Department of Labor for over an hour,” he told The Post. “They were inundated. When I finally spoke to a person, they told me I don’t qualify.”

The reason McGuire was unable to draw benefits is because he had moved to Oregon from New York at the beginning of the year. Notably, that meant he hadn’t worked in Oregon long enough to qualify. 

After that, he tried applying online in New York. He then said the website crashed, so he called the unemployment office. After another long wait, he was again told he didn’t qualify, this time because he had quit his job in New York. 

As unfortunate and as scary as a situation like that is for a person, it’s becoming an increasingly common story. Gig workers, tipped workers, and full-time students also tend to not qualify for benefits in many states.

According to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, 16 states have such restrictive criteria that less than 20% of laid-off workers even qualify for unemployment benefits.

Say, however, that you do qualify for unemployment in your state. One, you could be in a state where you have to sit on a week-long waiting list before you can see any payment. Or two, you might find that the average weekly payment of $385 just isn’t enough. 

“Workers expect unemployment insurance to be there for them in a downturn,” labor economist Martha Gimbel told The Post. “A bunch of workers are about to find out that it’s not. This is a real-life nightmare. Every hole we allowed to grow in our social safety net is hitting us all at once.”

What Are Governments Doing to Fix the Problem?

So far, several states—including Texas, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and New York—have all temporarily scrapped their “waiting week” provisions. 

The U.S. Senate passed a bipartisan bill Wednesday that would provide sick pay and free testing. Notably, that bill also includes $2 billion to state unemployment insurance programs. The bill, which previously received House approval, was signed into law by President Donald Trump yesterday.

That bill is expected to provide some relief, but it’s not a cure-all. Even before the coronavirus pandemic started, 23 states were already running low on their unemployment trust funds. 

That’s part of the reason why Trump Administration and a lot of other lawmakers are pushing for Congress to pass a bill that would send immediate checks to people. The Trump plan would provide $1 trillion in support, with $500 billion of that being split being two direct payments.

See what others are saying: (Politico) (Fox Business) (NPR)

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Survey and Census Data Shows Record Number of Americans are Struggling Financially

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1 week ago

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May 23, 2023

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Americans are choosing not to pursue medical treatment more and more frequently as they encounter money troubles.

A recent federal survey shows that a record number of Americans were worse off financially in 2022 than a year prior.

Coupled with recent census data showing pervasive poverty across much of the country, Americans are forced to make difficult decisions, like foregoing expensive healthcare. 

According to a recent Federal Reserve Bureau survey, 35% of adults say they were worse off in 2022 than 2021, which is the highest share ever recorded since the question was raised in 2014. 

Additionally, half of adults reported their budget was majorly affected by rising prices across the country, and that number is even higher among minority communities and parents living with their children.

According to recent census data, more than 10% of the counties in the U.S. are experiencing persistent poverty, meaning the area has had a poverty rate of 20% or higher between 1989 and 2019. 

16 states report at least 10% of their population living in persistent poverty. But most of the suffering counties were found in the South — which accounts for over half the people living in persistent poverty, despite making up less than 40% of the population. 

These financial realities have placed many Americans in the unfortunate situation of choosing between medical treatment and survival. The Federal Reserve study found that the share of Americans who skipped medical treatment because of the cost has drastically increased since 2020. 

The reflection of this can be found in the overall health of households in different income brackets. 75% of households with an income of $25,000 or less report being in good health – compared to the 91% of households with $100,000 or more income. 

See what others are saying: (Axios) (The Hill) (Federal Reserve)

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Montana Governor Signs TikTok Ban

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2 weeks ago

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May 18, 2023

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The ban will likely face legal challenges before it is officially enacted next year. 

First Statewide Ban of TikTok

Montana became the first state to ban TikTok on Wednesday after Gov. Greg Gianforte (R) signed legislation aimed at protecting “Montanans’ personal and private data from the Chinese Communist Party.”

The ban will go into effect on Jan. 1, 2024, though the law will likely face a handful of legal challenges before that date. 

Under the law, citizens of the state will not be held liable for using the app, but companies that offer the app on their platforms, like Apple and Google, will face a $10,000 fine per day of violations. TikTok would also be subject to the hefty daily fine. 

Questions remain about how tech companies will practically enforce this law. During a hearing earlier this year, a representative from TechNet said that these platforms don’t have the ability to “geofence” apps by state.

Roger Entner, an analyst at Recon Analytics, told the Associated Press that app stores could have the capability to enforce the restriction, but it would be difficult to carry out and there would be a variety of loopholes by tools like VPNs.

Montana’s law comes as U.S. politicians have taken aim at TikTok over its alleged ties to the CCP. Earlier this year, the White House directed federal agencies to remove TikTok from government devices. Conservatives, in particular, have been increasingly working to restrict the app.

“The Chinese Communist Party using TikTok to spy on Americans, violate their privacy, and collect their personal, private, and sensitive information is well-documented,” Gov. Gianforte said in a Wednesday statement. 

Criticism of Montana Law

TikTok, however, has repeatedly denied that it gives user data to the government. The company released a statement claiming Montana’s law “infringes on the First Amendment rights of the people” in the state. 

“We want to reassure Montanans that they can continue using TikTok to express themselves, earn a living, and find community as we continue working to defend the rights of our users inside and outside of Montana,” the company said. 

The American Civil Liberties Union condemned Montana’s law for similar reasons. 

“This law tramples on our free speech rights under the guise of national security and lays the groundwork for excessive government control over the internet,” the ACLU tweeted. “Elected officials do not have the right to selectively censor entire social media apps based on their country of origin.”

Per the AP, there are 200,000 TikTok users in Montana, and another 6,000 businesses use the platform as well. Lawsuits are expected to be filed against the law in the near future.

See what others are saying: (Associated Press) (Fast Company) (CBS News)

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How a Disney-Loving Former Youth Pastor Landed on The FBI’s “Most Wanted” List

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1 month ago

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April 24, 2023

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 “Do what is best, not for yourself, for once. Think about everyone else,” Chris Burns’ 19-year-old son pleaded to his father via The Daily Beast. 

Multi-Million Dollar Scheme 

Former youth pastor turned financial advisor Chris Burns remains at large since going on the run in September of 2020 to avoid a Securities Exchange Commission investigation into his businesses.

Despite his fugitive status, the Justice Department recently indicted Burns with several more charges on top of the $12 million default judgment he received from the SEC. 

Burns allegedly sold false promissory notes to investors across Georgia, North Carolina, and Florida. The SEC claims he told the investors they were participating in a “peer to peer” lending program where businesses that needed capital would borrow money and then repay it with interest as high as 20%. Burns allegedly also reassured investors that the businesses had collateral so the investment was low-risk. 

The SEC says that Burns instead took that money for personal use. 

Burns’ History 

Burns began his adult life as a youth pastor back in 2007 before transitioning into financial planning a few years later.  By 2017, he launched his own radio show, The Chris Burns Show, which was funded by one of his companies, Dynamic Money – where every week Burns would “unpack how this week’s headlines practically impact your life, wallet, and future,” according to the description. He also frequently appeared on television and online, talking about finances and politics. 

The SEC alleges that he used his public appearances to elevate his status as a financial advisor and maximize his reach to investors.

His family told The Daily Beast that he became obsessed with success and he reportedly bought hand-made clothes, a million-dollar lakehouse, a boat, several cars, and took his family on several trips to Disney World. His eldest son and wife said that Burns was paying thousands of dollars a day for VIP tours and once paid for the neighbors to come along. 

Then in September 2020, he reportedly told his wife that he was being investigated by the Securities Exchange Commission but he told her not to worry. 

The day that he was supposed to turn over his business documents to the SEC, he disappeared, telling his wife he was just going to take a trip to North Carolina to tell his parents about the investigation. Then, the car was found abandoned in a parking lot with several cashier’s checks totaling $78,000

FBI’s Most Wanted

The default judgment in the SEC complaint orders Burns, if he’s ever found, to pay $12 million to his victims, as well as over $650,000 in a civil penalty. Additionally, a federal criminal complaint charged him with mail fraud. Burns is currently on the FBI’s Most Wanted list. 

Last week, the Justice Department indicted him on several other charges including 10 counts of wire fraud and two counts of mail fraud. 

“Burns is charged for allegedly stealing millions of dollars from clients in an illegal investment fraud scheme,” Keri Farley, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta, said in a statement to The Daily Beast. “Financial crimes of this nature can cause significant disruptions to the lives of those who are victimized, and the FBI is dedicated to holding these criminals accountable.”

His family maintains that they knew nothing of Burns’ schemes. His wife reportedly returned over $300,000 that he had given to her. 

She and their eldest son, who is now 19, told The Daily Beast they just want Burns to turn himself in, take responsibility for his actions, and try to help the people he hurt. 

“Do what is best, not for yourself, for once. Think about everyone else,” Burns’ son said in a message to his father via The Daily Beast. 

See what others are saying: (The Daily Beast) (Fox 5) (Wealth Management)

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