99er's - Here we go! Talks of deadline extensions already starting!

Unemployment benefits fading away

Nearly all Americans who find themselves out of work starting next month will likely receive only 26 weeks of state unemployment checks -- at most.

Why? Because the deadline to file for extended federal benefits expires at the end of the year.

"Most people who lose their jobs after July 1... won't be eligible for federal unemployment benefits," said George Wentworth, senior staff attorney at the National Employment Law Project.

http://tinyurl.com/5uv8h3w

Are we going to sit by and let this happen again? Any help for the unemployed MUST include legislation for the 99ers this time. If we don't act NOW, we will be "SOL"!!!

That is pretty frightening considering that the unemployment crisis is far from over. People probably dont expect that they will ever need more than 99 weeks or in this case 26. you are sadly mistaken!!! We never thought we would still be unemployed after all this time. The jobs arent there, so we have to fight for more benefits for 99ERS too.

We cant let them leave us out this time and we need help from those who are still receiving benefits. Many 99ers helped advocate for benefits knowing they would not benefit from it. PLEASE we need everyones help for ALL the unemployed!!!

This recession isnt over by a long shot and the unemployment rate is edging back up.

It can't happen again and it is up to us not to let it happen again. At least 3 times over the past year the 99ers have stepped up to the plate for the unemployed who still receive benefits to advocate for extending the deadlines. There was nothing in it for us! Time for those who benefited from those extensions to step up and reciprocate! I hope they will keep in mind that these weeks go very quickly. Early last December when 4213 passed to extend the deadlines until the end of the year, I never dreamed we would be here today, starting the same thing over again.

yes, indeed its up to us as it always has been just like we have continued to press forward for the extension deadlines themselves, of equal importance each time. What was the recent count of exhaustees for the month of both April and May that have fallen off the UC program? It would be interesting for us to know what the amount of exhaustees we'll be faced with between the months of July through December, so we can 'categorize' or batch this equally important group alongside in a sentence with the issue at hand here when talking about the amount of people affected by end of year from deadlines.


Sadly, the exhaustees face a DEADLINE EVERY SINGLE DAY, some for over 400 deadline days now, consecutively, which includes wide range of problems with it (daily phone calls from creditors etc...)

mj33 wrote:yes, indeed its up to us as it always has been just like we have continued to press forward for the extension deadlines themselves, of equal importance each time. What was the recent count of exhaustees for the month of both April and May that have fallen off the UC program? It would be interesting for us to know what the amount of exhaustees we'll be faced with between the months of July through December, so we can 'categorize' or batch this equally important group alongside in a sentence with the issue at hand here when talking about the amount of people affected by end of year from deadlines.


Sadly, the exhaustees face a DEADLINE EVERY SINGLE DAY, some for over 400 deadline days now, consecutively, which includes wide range of problems with it (daily phone calls from creditors etc...)

It would be great to know the true number of exhaustees. We have the "Jobless Workers Losing Their Lifeline" clock, but that isn't the information from the BLS, and that is the number that Congress listens to.

Any member who can find this information, please post it! We need help! There are tools on the forum to extract numbers from the DOL database that could assist in this project.

Here is a link, provided to Sick & Tired from someone at the St. Louis Federal Reserve.
http://research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/release?rid=50&pageID=1

Thanks for posting this. We do need to keep screaming. It is up to us, it should have to be but it is and we cannot sit silently. Momentum is building with the talk of the real unemployment rate and poor job performance last week and in May.

We are tired and we are feeling down but we have, have, have to keep going.

DesperateInRI wrote:It can't happen again and it is up to us not to let it happen again. At least 3 times over the past year the 99ers have stepped up to the plate for the unemployed who still receive benefits to advocate for extending the deadlines. There was nothing in it for us! Time for those who benefited from those extensions to step up and reciprocate! I hope they will keep in mind that these weeks go very quickly. Early last December when 4213 passed to extend the deadlines until the end of the year, I never dreamed we would be here today, starting the same thing over again.

My husbands benefits were exhausted last august. Never in our wildest dreams did we EVER think we would end up here. I knew it was a possibility but just thought it wouldn't happen to us. It feels like its never going to end.

I am so thankful that I found you all and this site last summer. I had NO clue what was going on or how this all worked until then. Although I am disgusted and shocked at the way congress operates, I am grateful that I now know what I know. (if that makes any sense lol) I met some some amazing people along the way.

We ALL need to stick together and advocate in full force NOW. It cant wait until the fall.

I think the regional DOL offices would be a place an economist would contact in gathering this info, however we the public are highly unlikely to be given such data, Id imagine, now an economist or reporter doing an article for newspaper, perhaps different story. Each state however has been known to have slightly different numbers themselves but one would have to think states would be the most accurate, but never know. A research article from Upjohn Institute or a paper on their behalf makes note of this type of issue between the states and federal level, just worth mentioning.

I would agree that each state would have the most accurate number, as an example here is CA the EDD office keeps record of all who have exhausted the 99 weeks and they update their website with that number every Tuesday. They stated that the reason they keep this record is in the event that legislation is passed and signed into law that would extend benefits beyond 99 weeks.

They were doing this so if the program was extended beyond 99 weeks they could begin filing claims without a delay for those individuals.

As of June 7, 2011 California now as over 439,000 99ers. There are 7000 new 99ers added to the ranks each week here.

I don't know if all EDD offices in each state are keeping track but I would think they would be considering, but I'm not sure.

unfortunately when more and more drop off unemployment benefits then they join the 99 er group and now the estimated cost to extend the 14 week 589 bill estimated at 16 billion will double in cost! But they need to do something fast!

My point is this -- the original "99ers" have been through this process 3 times in a year. We have advocated for the extension of deadlines even when there was nothing in it for us. This can't happen again. Once the focus shifts to extending the deadlines for the tiers past 12/31, any chance of getting help for the exhaustees goes out the door.

It wouldn't surprise me at all to see a new bill come forward from the House or the Senate within the next month to extend the deadlines as part of any compromises or deals in the budget/debt ceiling negotiations.

The 99ers need to be proactive more than ever now - help for us MUST be included in any bills that come forward for future extensions. Although it may help to know the exact number, we know it is in the millions, and the number increases every day. This can't go on - we need help now!

Yes, Desperate is spot on. Now does everyone see what inaction and procrastination has brought us?

Just one more obstacle/distraction in addressing the unemployed 99er issue. This forum is for all unemployed, whether still receiving UI, having ended UI and becoming a 99er, or having been in a circumstance which prevented collecting UI ever.

However, TODAY, not tomorrow or "sometime next week". TODAY is for the 99ers! Please stay tuned and please treat this as a project. If the project fails, we fail. If the project succeeds, we succeed, HR 589 is passed, we have some breathing room, the new UIers have 14 additional weeks on their Tier 1, and the current working force will benefit without even knowing!

Please stay focused. We need your input, even if it's one sentence.

Thanks.

I just became a 99er as of Monday this week and it hasn't quite hit me yet that I no longer have an income coming in. I received my last check with no claim form attached. I'm still hoping and praying that Congress and every frickin politician will do the right thing and pass HR589 and help the 99ers. It's inconceivable to me that in this country we can't even take care of our own.

I have been twittering and emailing. Will continue to do so until the fat lady sings.

Keeping everyone in my prayers. Stay strong!!!

-Fred

“Nobody knows the trouble I’ve seen; nobody seems to care”!

Well, the old blues lyric seems to apply when it comes to being unemployed, with having no more benefits, and the government continuing to turn a deaf ear away from the millions of their needy unemployed citizenry. What can one make of this situation anymore? Well, I say the GOP, otherwise known as the party of the “bloated elephant”, appear to be so full of them selves, that when they look in the mirror their narcissistic “fat cat” reflection seems to predominately cloud their view of the current reality going on in this fair country today.

Since there always seems to be “two coins in a fountain”, the other side of the coin is the so-called democratic party of the people, otherwise known as the party of the “slow foot donkeys”. For the last year, the jobless of America have been trying to ride these pack mules to the “promised land” of “good and plenty”. However, the only place they have traveled to so far is “no man’s land”. The ride itself has been much too long and just full of peeks and valleys; certainly more of the latter than the former. It appears the head donkey, otherwise known as the President, seems to be the prime “unmoved mover” for creating this slow mule train in a ride to no where. Certainly the obvious answer is that the millions of jobless need to kick start this mule train. The “16 billion dollar” question is how can this be done? The value of this particular question is only increasing as time marches on, if you catch my drift.

It appears that some of these so-called democratic donkeys leading this parade need to be traded in for some thoroughbred horses. Ah yes; that’s it! Horses that can be ridden to speed things up a bit and have some skill in driving this unemployment train to the destination that the millions of long term jobless have been seeking to arrive at for quite some time. Seems like a simple solution, ah… but the devil is in the details as always! Who in the Democratic Party is savvy enough, strong enough, and smart enough to direct this campaign onward and upward? Is there anyone currently on this planet and in congress who is both politically able and capable to rally this cause? Who can be the so-called “rally monkey” for HR 589?

The fight to move this campaign forward is becoming a long and hard road. All the “blood, sweat, & tears” so far seems to have gone for naught? On a positive note, however, there are other situations in this country that believe it or not, have been even more protracted and frustrating!

For instance, here is a little “tongue and cheek” parody for you all to consider. The Chicago Cubs haven’t won a World Series since 1908 and haven’t even been in one since 1945. Think of this time frame in terms of the millions of unemployed who weren’t even alive the last time the Cubs were in the Series, let alone when they last won it! Certainly, the way things are going so far this year there is no light at the end of the tunnel and football season can come soon enough!

To give you a sense of the time perspective to this on-going jobless dilemma, unemployment benefits didn’t even exist in 1908 and were just an FDR created government program in its infancy in 1945. Generations of long suffering Cub fans have carried this burden year after year clinging to the belief that “hope springs eternal”! Will this finally be the year is the paramount question come opening day on every Cub fan’s mind. Millions of these well meaning fans from the "Cub nation" situated all across the country continue to carry on year after year supporting this franchise hoping they will finally see the day when the championship victory parade will finally occur. Many critics have said that this will never happen as the franchise is cursed?! Really now; do curses even exist you may wonder! You probably have heard it referred to as the “Billie Goat Curse”! Many credible Cub fans, believe or not, actually do place some credence to this curse being a factor in this on-going campaign for the Cubs continued mediocrity. Well, I think we may need some “angels in the outfield” to finally see the promised land with this problem, which may be unlike the kind of tonic that is needed for HR 589 to see its way clear in the United States Congress to the President’s desk for signature. In fact, for all the good the representatives who are still living have done for this problem, maybe we can conduct a séance and contact the spirit world. If we can connect with some of the champions of a by-gone era who have since departed maybe that will help this campaign? Perhaps, Senator Ed Kennedy’s spirit can be solicited to help bring some relief?

Well now, you have my permission… you can all now laugh at this momentary digression. A sense of humor may be just what the doctor ordered in dealing with so much adversity and illogical thinking by our current representatives. Ha! Ha! Ha!

This lyric from the Beatles book of tunes may be the right battle cry for navigating HR 589’s forward progress. HELP! I need somebody. HELP! Not just anybody. HELP! You know I need somebody. HEEEEELLLLPP!!!!!

Finally, here is a lyric from a tune that was popular during the Great Depression of the 1929-30 period of our history. I think in terms of what everyone in this unemployment boat is looking for now that this lyric probably rings very true to the ears.

“What is there to say? What is there to do? The dream I’ve been seeking has practically speaking come true”.

Hopefully, this last lyric’s meaning will bear itself out very soon for the “dreams” (HR 589 & jobs) of all concerned!

Now, on a more sober note, we can all “cry in our beer”!

Giving up, staying silent or walking away is not an option here. No 99er has that luxury. I will continue to email, fax, call and tweet, I hope you will as well. We have been united for so long, now is not the time to walk away. Unemployment is on everyone's mind now, on every station now. Let's ride the wave.

Ron, you mention the "tongue in cheek" parody of the Chicago White Sox when speaking of HR 589. I'll think of it in terms of the Boston Red Sox, who like the White Sox had a long drought of championships and many heartbreaking defeats. No one ever thought they could overcome the "Curse of the Bambino" that was said to be put on them in 1918 when they traded Babe Ruth to the Yankees. They did it, despite all the naysayers by winning the World Series in 2004, much to the surprise of even their own fans.

aerage of 47,000 claimants falling off the UI ranks each week according to state of California state employment statistics, and yet, Boxer did not mention one single word or sentence at todays floor time on CSPan2, but rather spent about 5-10 minutes arguing amongst her constituents like little kids as to whether or not she could give 2 members of her own party floor time instead of her to speak, then finally when she came back to her speaking, nothing at all on the unemployment or 589, or long-term unemployed, and the specific ammendment being talked about was ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT bill, and she was speaking in rebuttal on 90% of her floor speach to the Snowe Ammendment which talked about small business rule changes and Olympia talked for about 15 minutes on unemployment rate. So wheer exactly is Miss Boxers priorities, to not even mention one single thing on it, after listening to Snowe's rhetorical remarks , who votes these people in??????

I agree Liz and like many, I champion the cause of the underdog. Underdogs win and this is not just a fight Dems vs. Repubs, this is a moral fight. We are people no statistics. What do we look like to other countries when our humanitarian aid only goes overseas and to disaster victims. If we don't take care of our own, how do we look to other countries? It's an issue that has taken far too long and is starting to gain some attention, let's ride the wave as they say. Get Loud, Often. Make your voices heard everyday. Silence gets us nowhere, it's precisely what they want, for us to fold and go away. Not me, I am fighting for all of us, as are many, we need all to fight, they need to see our numbers and read our stories.

Saw an article from Chicago on the 99er.net facebook page (I believe) today, in which states from either chicago's federal reserve or two chicago economists that anywhere between 10-20% additional exhaustees have fallen off and exist out there (being the 99ers) due to not being counted into the equation. Pretty sure that was the logistics of that particular stat, read lot of articles today so not 100% certain but think so, lol.

Perhaps someone can also post that article onto our forum site, if it isn't already pasted.

Just to add, I believe it may have been published from June 2nd, if Im not mistaken.

exhaustedandtired/1208 wrote:unfortunately when more and more drop off unemployment benefits then they join the 99 er group and now the estimated cost to extend the 14 week 589 bill estimated at 16 billion will double in cost! But they need to do something fast!

Very good point, 1208. I do think that they realize that passing HR 589 has a few effects. It adds 14 weeks into T1, so everyone coming onboard EUC will be getting this as well as those dropping off the back end of EUC/EB, AND the 99ers.

So this is actually a real firecracker.

mj33, the answer to your question is the American people voted all of these people in. We have all said it before, voting out of emotion does no good. All those so angry at the Dems last November gave us another two years of nothing getting done. It's an important point for all to remember come election time, if you want no middle class, vote carefully, listen to what candidates stand for, polarized party candidates are getting us nowhere. No jobs, no real recovery and a very uncertain future.

Me also, lol, Ive quietly behind the scenes for past 6 months or so especially been contacting some former friends from hometown that have direct input or affiliation in support of the US senator, Sherrod Brown, and always facebooking him on the position status of us and myself relevant to the unemployed.

In process of attacking other democratic legislatures at state level that represent the area, new ones never contacted, but our local workforce center is worthless, tried several times, but even has an employee that got reprimended by the state, believe on 'probation', then recently came back to to his unpopular and ignorant remarks in taking shots at the unemployed with opinions including not supporting a tier 5, which is hyporcrital being that he works in area of workforce development and in effort of helping people.

MaryKay, you are correct, no doubt. "The problem is many times there are no qualified applicants to even vote for, hence ther reason many do not vote on candidates taht are all lip service and won't support the lower middle class and show direct methods or strategies before being elected what their plans are. So, if there are limited amount or no independents on ballot that a certain voter can support, then he/she often times is in a 'rut' and left with no options, and often times each party line is just as equally bad candidate as the other.

1208 raises a valid point agreed, however, it is going to get worse and worse and then it will cost them far more money than the extension would have in lost revenues, loss of consumer confidence, the markets going oingo boingo daily, more and more foreclosures to say nothing of millions going on State Social Service Benefits. According to Social Services in NJ they are stretched to the max and these people don't just cover the unemployed and welfare, they also cover family services and are required to do home visitations, which have come to a complete stop. Children are put at risk when this happens. It's a huge problem and far costlier than extending unemployment benefits for 14 weeks.