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After a turbulent few months, unemployment filings fall again

Nov 15, 2024
Last week, 217,000 people filed new claims for unemployment insurance. Back in the summer and early fall, that number spiked as high as 260,000.
Jobless claims are back down to levels last seen in the spring, signaling low layoffs and a rebound in job gains to come.
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The case for wage insurance to offset future job disruption

There's already unemployment insurance. But new research makes the case for wage insurance as further protection for workers.
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Weekly jobless claims dip, but they've climbed this spring. What's the takeaway?

May 16, 2024
Recent data indicates some cooling of the job market, but the real number of people laid off may be higher.
The Conference Board reports more Americans anticipate that jobs will be harder to find, and employment and income trends will worsen, in the coming months.
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Three years after the pandemic recession, signing up for unemployment still isn't easy

Jun 26, 2023
States are upgrading IT and accessibility to unemployment insurance, but it's a long hard road.
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Layoffs may be on the horizon. Is the unemployment insurance system ready?

Aug 4, 2022
States are upgrading antiquated technology. But there are still big disparities among states.
Though states are investing to upgrade unemployment systems, there are still wide disparities among their processes and the benefits they provide.
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GAO report highlights vulnerabilities in the unemployment insurance claims system

Jun 9, 2022
The report says decades of underinvestment in personnel and technology have led to weaknesses that were exposed during the pandemic, when there was high demand for benefits.
The GAO said the demand for unemployment benefits during the pandemic brought to light a variety of  weaknesses in the system.
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As federal unemployment benefits end, many states' UI systems remain janky

Sep 7, 2021
Some crash, others don’t work on mobile devices. In some states, workers have to wait to receive new passwords by mail to access their accounts.
To help states improve their unemployment systems, the Labor Department is creating an Unemployment Insurance Modernization unit.
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Did hiring pick up after states ended extra federal unemployment benefits?

Jul 22, 2021
What business owners are seeing, plus a look at unemployment and job search data.
Hiring results have been mixed in states where federal unemployment benefits have ended.
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Big jump in unemployment benefit claims from gig workers

Jan 21, 2021
More people are relying on gig work, which puts a lot of risk on the workers themselves.
An Uber driver participates in a car rally calling for basic employment rights in August 2020 in Los Angeles.
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Unemployment insurance is broken. What would it take to fix it?

Jan 20, 2021
Making the unemployment system a federal program could help reduce some of the huge racial disparities that currently exist.
Some economists are saying it is time for the federal government to take over the unemployment insurance system.
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