Unemployment Benefits

DURING THE last days of his presidency, John F. Kennedy had a number of concerns on his mind. In tapes being released today by the Kennedy Library, we hear, for example, the president focus on his reelection and issues of economic inequality. What can we do, he asks his political advisers, to make voters "decide that they want to vote for us, Democrats? What is it we have to sell 'em? We hope we have to sell them prosperity, but for the average guy the prosperity is nil. He's not unprosperous, but he's not very prosperous.

By Evan Allen, Town Correspondent Wellesley's former school business manager, who was fired in March and is now suing the superintendent and chair of the school committee , is eligible for nearly $17,000 in unemployment benefits from the town, according to the town's finance director. "I expect that she will be able to collect up to 26 weeks of unemployment," said Finance Director Sheryl Strother. Strother said that Berdell is eligible for $653 per week for up to 26 weeks, for a total of $16,978.

WASHINGTON - The Senate failed to extend programs for laid-off workers yesterday, jeopardizing unemployment benefits scheduled to expire tomorrow. The benefits are part of a larger package of government programs, from highway funding to loans for small businesses, set to expire because senators couldn’t agree on how to pay for them. The House passed a bill Thursday extending the programs for one month while lawmakers consider how to address the issues long term. Senate Democrats repeatedly tried to follow suit Thursday night and yesterday morning, but they couldn’t overcome the objections of...

Gov. Dannel P. Malloy's administration announced Thursday that it has organized an outreach effort to help more than 12,000 long-term jobless workers receive an array of social services after losing extended unemployment insurance benefits. The announcement came less than an hour after the state Department of Labor said the unemployment rate remained stuck at 7.7 percent in April. Connecticut's unemployment rate has dropped from a high of 9.4 percent in December 2010. The falling unemployment rate — while welcome as the state and the rest of the U.S. climb out of the Great...

The number of people seeking unemployment aid has fallen to near a four-year low, an encouraging sign for the job market. A little bump in applications last week is unlikely to change that view. Economists forecast that weekly applications rose 7,000 to a seasonally adjusted 355,000, according to a survey by FactSet. The Labor Department will release the report at 8:30 a.m. EST Thursday. Applications began to fall steadily about four months ago, and the decline has accelerated recently.

The number of people applying for unemployment benefits rose back above 400,000 last week. Still, the four-week average, a more reliable gauge of the job market, fell to the lowest level since mid-April. The report suggests that the economy is creating jobs but not nearly enough to lower the high unemployment rate. Weekly applications rose 9,000 to a seasonally adjusted 408,000, the Labor Department said Thursday. That's the highest level in four weeks. Applications have been above 400,000 for 18 of the past 19 weeks.

The jobless rate is dipping, but millions of people are still out of work. And that could have implications when they file their income tax returns. Collecting unemployment insurance benefits? All that you received in 2011 is taxed as income. Unless you requested that federal taxes be withheld, you could be in for a big surprise when you calculate taxes owed. "People tend to believe unemployment benefits are still not taxable," said Bob Meighan, a vice president at TurboTax.

MONTPELIER - The state of Vermont is shortening the length of time seasonally unemployed people can be out of work before they need to look for other jobs, Governor Peter Shumlin said yesterday. Under the old system, people who were laid off from their seasonal jobs - such as in the ski industry or construction - didn't need to look for new jobs while receiving state unemployment benefits unless they were out of work for more than six months to nine months. Now they have to look for work after 10 weeks.

Some municipal public safety workers are retiring at age 65 and collecting unemployment as well as their pensions. Some teachers are taking a lump-sum payment in June to cover their salaries through summer vacation, collecting unemployment, and resuming their teaching careers in September. Some school bus drivers receive unemployment compensation for school vacation and days off. Those were scenarios presented in a letter to Governor Deval Patrick, authored by Lynnfield Town Administrator Bill Gustus and cosigned by town officials in 23 other...

By Evan Allen, Town Correspondent Wellesley's former school business manager, who was fired in March and is now suing the superintendent and chair of the school committee , is eligible for nearly $17,000 in unemployment benefits from the town, according to the town's finance director. "I expect that she will be able to collect up to 26 weeks of unemployment," said Finance Director Sheryl Strother. Strother said that Berdell is eligible for $653 per week for up to 26 weeks, for a total of $16,978.

The number of people applying for U.S. unemployment benefits ticked down last week after dropping sharply the previous week, evidence hiring could pick up this month. Weekly applications dropped 1,000 to a seasonally adjusted 367,000 in the week ending May 5, the Labor Department said Thursday. The previous week's figure was revised up slightly. The four-week average, a less volatile measure, fell 5,250 to 379,000. Applications are a measure of the pace of layoffs.

With her anti-poverty budget stretched beyond its limits, Brenda Callahan-Johnson is braced for next Saturday: the day California's chronically unemployed will be cut off from the nation's jobless benefits. A drop in the state's unemployment rate to 11 percent — its lowest mark in three years — is triggering the federal cutoff of emergency, long-term unemployment pay to at least 93,000 Californians. But in the state's agricultural heartland, where Callahan-Johnson runs the Merced County Community Action Agency, a jobless rate of more than 20...

WASHINGTON - The Obama administration is looking for states that will experiment with unemployment insurance programs by letting people test a job while still receiving benefits. The plan is a key feature of a payroll tax cut package that President Obama negotiated with congressional Republicans in February. The Labor Department will open the application process for 10 model projects across the country. Any state can apply for the Bridge to Work program. The plan is modeled after a Georgia program in which workers who have lost jobs can be...

Mitt Romney last week declared his belief that "all moms are working moms," but he insisted as recently as January that women on welfare need to get jobs, even if they have young children. Romney defended his wife, Ann, a stay-at-home mother, on Friday after Democratic strategist Hilary Rosen said earlier in the week that Ann Romney is unqualified to speak for women's economic concerns because she "has actually never worked a day in her life. " Romney, himself, has said the "all moms are working moms" argument does not apply to mothers who accept welfare assistance.

WASHINGTON - The outlook for US economic growth is looking slightly better. American businesses sold a record number of goods and services in Europe, China, and other foreign markets in February, while imports declined. Many economists began raising their forecasts for January-March growth after seeing Thursday's government report on the lowest trade deficit since the fall. And the jump in exports helped drive stocks higher for a second straight day. The Dow Jones industrial average rose more than 160 points, while broader indexes also increased.

The number of people seeking U.S. unemployment benefits dropped last week to the lowest level in four years, adding to evidence that the job market is strengthening. Applications for weekly unemployment benefits fell by 5,000 to a seasonally adjusted 359,000, the Labor Department said Thursday. That's the fewest applicants since April 2008. The four-week average, a less volatile measure, declined to 365,000 — the fewest for that measure since May 2008. When unemployment benefit applications drop consistently below 375,000, it usually...

PROVIDENCE - A nationwide crackdown is coming for people fraudulently drawing unemployment payments - those who were never eligible and workers who keep getting checks after they return to work - a $17 billion benefits swindle last year alone, say federal officials. With the poor economy lingering and the jobless rate remaining high, Rhode Island and other states are stepping up efforts to stop the fraud and improper payments. As much as 30 percent of the wrong payments in 2010 went to people who had returned to the workforce but continued to claim benefits, according to Dale...

Newton Mayor Setti Warren is one of the members of the newly created Department of Unemployment Assistance's task force on municipalities, which is part of a state effort to investigate and reform the municipal unemployment compensation system. "I was honored to be chosen by Governor Patrick as a member of this team," Warren wrote in an e-mail commenting on his new role. "Newton, like many communities across the Commonwealth, needs to take a close look at reforming this area of government.

Newton Mayor Setti Warren is one of the members of the newly created Department of Unemployment Assistance's task force on municipalities, which is part of a state effort to investigate and reform the municipal unemployment compensation system. "I was honored to be chosen by Governor Patrick as a member of this team," Warren wrote in an e-mail commenting on his new role. "Newton, like many communities across the Commonwealth, needs to take a close look at reforming this area of government.