A new stimulus deal is brewing – here’s what it could mean for unemployment benefits



[ad_1]

With major federal unemployment assistance programs will expire by the end of the year, the question is to know what could replace them when unemployment distress the US economy and millions of Americans are struggling to make ends meet.

In Washington, DC, two competing proposals were presented this week, although each offers significantly different levels of support for unemployed workers. The first is a $ 908 billion congressional bipartisan plan which prioritizes assistance to unemployed people, businesses, and state and local governments. The second is a smaller Republican initiative that aims to help companies stay afloat while limiting their legal exposure to coronavirus-related lawsuits.

The broader stimulus package appears to be gaining traction, with President Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer saying the proposal should form the basis for any further negotiations. The plan also received support from several Republican senators. Pelosi said on Friday that she would like to attach new coronavirus relief legislation to a government funding omnibus bill due to pass next week to avoid government shutdown.

While the final contours of a stimulus measure remain under discussion on Capitol Hill, many experts clearly see the need for additional economic aid. Job growth slowed down sharply last month as the coronavirus increased.

“We are still in a situation where just under 19 million people are claiming benefits for major unemployment programs,” said Andrew Stettner, an unemployment benefits expert at the Century Foundation, a progressive think tank. “An extreme number of people have been out of work for a long time and are therefore at their end of the line.”

Ideally, Stettner said, Congress would approve an additional six months of the core benefits provided by the Coronavirus Help, Relief, and Economic Security Act, or CARES. This could provide a financial bridge for workers until vaccines are widely available, in which case businesses like restaurants and hotels could start recruiting again.

Unemployment programs due to be halted on December 26 are the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance Program (PUA), which provides assistance to self-employed and on-demand workers, and the Unemployment Compensation Program in pandemic event (PEUC), which provides 13 additional weeks of benefits. beyond the typical 26 weeks that states provide to the unemployed.

Neither of the two stimulus proposals would provide an additional six months of benefits for both programs. But President-elect Joe Biden and the new Congress that will sit in January could negotiate a more generous stimulus package in early 2021, experts say.

Here’s what each stimulus package would offer unemployed workers.

$ 908 billion bipartisan plan

Backed by senators including Joe Manchin, a Democrat from West Virginia, and Mitt Romney, a Republican from Utah, the proposal would allocate $ 180 billion in unemployment assistance.

This would represent the second largest chunk of spending under the plan, with $ 288 billion in funding for small businesses. According to the Washington Post, this money would provide an additional $ 300 per week in unemployment assistance, as well as state unemployment benefits.

The $ 180 billion “is enough to add another 13 weeks of benefits to both PEUC, for workers at W2, and PUA, and for those who are not eligible for state benefits,” Stettner said.

In other words, the unemployed could have their benefits extended until March instead of expiring at the end of December.

McConnell’s “targeted” plan

The second plan proposed this week comes from Kentucky Republican Senator Mitch McConnell, who described it as “targeted” aid. His plan would extend PUA and PEUC by one month, until January 31, and then phase out benefits over the next two months.

However, the two-month phase-out after Jan. 31 would only be available to people who have exhausted their benefits. In other words, if you lost your job when the pandemic started and ran out of your qualifying unemployment assistance, you will not be eligible for additional assistance after January 31.

McConnell’s proposal also includes a liability shield for companies to protect them from lawsuits in case workers are infected with the coronavirus at work. This has drawn opposition from consumer and worker advocates.

“McConnell’s maybe worse than nothing because it’s only a one month extension and he has the shield of accountability,” said Michele Evermores, senior policy analyst at the National Employment Law Project. “It will force people back to COVID infested workplaces, with no way to prosecute if they are injured and it has very little incentive for workplaces to be safe.


$ 908 billion stimulus package gathers momentum

02:09



[ad_2]

Source link