Zuma Global President Heather Zumarraga weighs in on the cost of paying Americans not to work.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Americans living in some GOP-led states could lose their unemployment benefits this week, almost three months before the extra aid is slated to end. <\/p>\n
At least 25 states led by Republican governors decided in May and June to prematurely drop out of several pandemic relief programs, including those that provided an extra $300 a week on top of regular state unemployment benefits and expanded eligibility for jobless aid. The supplemental benefits are not poised to expire until Sept. 6.<\/p>\n
WHAT BIDEN'S CAPITAL GAINS TAX PROPOSAL COULD MEAN FOR YOUR WALLET<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n Alaska, Iowa, Mississippi and Missouri will be the first to opt out, ending the pandemic-era programs for out-of-work Americans on June 12.<\/p>\n The other states terminating benefits early – Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Georgia, Florida, Idaho, Indiana, Maryland, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, West Virginia and Wyoming – will stop giving unemployed workers an extra $300 in benefits sometime over the summer. <\/p>\n Roughly 16 million Americans will lose their unemployment benefits as a result, according to one estimate published by the Century Foundation.<\/p>\n JOB SEARCHES SPIKED IN STATES PREMATURELY ENDING UNEMPLOYMENT BENEFITS<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n The measures came in light of the Labor Department's April payroll report, which revealed the economy added just 266,000 jobs last month – sharply missing the 1 million forecast by Refinitiv economists. Payroll growth also missed expectations in May, igniting concerns about a labor shortage and its potential impact on the economy's tepid rebound from the pandemic. <\/p>\n GOP lawmakers were quick to blame the extra unemployment aid for the anemic job growth, although experts have also cited a lack of child care and fears of contracting COVID-19 for the hiring shortage. <\/p>\n There remain 7.6 million fewer jobs than in February 2020, before the pandemic began.<\/p>\n The average state unemployment benefit is about $330 per week<\/u>. With the federal supplement, Americans are receiving about $630 in weekly unemployment benefits. (For comparison's sake, that's about $32,000 annually, or roughly double the nation's minimum wage.)<\/p>\n