I've been anxiously watching the debate in Congress over extending unemployment benefit date until November 30. This is not another benefit extension; it is merely an extension of the date that benefits already in place can be collected. The bill, H.R. 5618, recently passed the House but has been blocked by Senate Republicans for months. Apparently, they think that those of us who have been unemployed for over one year have been sitting around on our fat duffs doing drugs and collecting large sums of the public's money while causing the deficit to spiral out of control. One wonders what planet they are living on.
I am not yet a "99er," the term used by the Washington Post's Michael A. Fletcher to describe the unemployed who have reached the end of their 99-week extended unemployment benefit period. I still have one more six-week extension that I can't collect because of Congress' inaction. When that is gone, I will be living on my meagre retirement savings until I find work. At least I have that advantage; thousands of unemployed Americans with families to support have no savings to speak of and no other safety net in place beyond unemployment insurance. The 99ers, Fletcher tells us, are the 1.4 million people who who have been out of work "for at least 99 weeks" and that number increases with each passing week. According to the Department of Labor, there are "five unemployed people for every job opening" and the total number of folks who are unemployed is estimated to be 14.6 million, not counting the millions more who are under the radar. That's a lot of Americans without jobs.
I've spent the last two years, not on my duff, but in graduate school earning my master's degree and a tidy $12,000 student loan debt to boot. With an M.A. in hand, I hoped I could find steady work at a pay rate at or above what I was making as a photojournalist. But so far I'm fishing in an empty pond. I'm fighting not only against a "jobs deficit" but also against my age (55). Employers are wary of hiring older workers who will only stay a few years and then retire, or worse yet, who have been out of work for an extended period of time and are therefore perceived to be not as sharp in their skillsets. I've already resigned myself to taking part time work in lieu of a job with benefits like healthcare and a 401k but even part time jobs are hard to come by these days. I'm over-qualified for low-paying production jobs and under-qualified for tenure-track teaching positions. I've approached dozens of companies to offer my services as a freelance photographer only to hear "we already have someone who does that" or "that's taken care of by the corporate office." I've attended numerous job fairs, passed out dozens of resumes and placed my business card in countless stores and waiting rooms across the Lehigh Valley but have not received one phone call.
Today, the Washington Post announces that "Corporate America is hoarding a massive pile of cash" but "just doesn't want to spend it to hire anyone." In other words, profits are way up but as long as we have employees who have been shouldering the workload of their laid-off counterparts for the last two years, we ain't gonna hire anyone new. And so the wheels on the bus go 'round and 'round.
The Republicans scoff at long-term unemployment insurance, saying it breeds laziness. I've been ashamed of being a Republican ever since the fiasco of the 2008 presidential race but this is the proverbial straw that will make me switch parties. I've had enough. Their corporate interests (does the name Halliburton ring any bells?) by far negate any alleged concern for the burgeoning deficit. Shame on them.
The current bill in Congress won't help the 99ers. Even House Speaker Rep. Nancy Pelosi [D, CA-8] has said "no" to any further extensions of benefits beyond the 99 weeks. Even if H.R. 5618 passes in the Senate it means only a four-month stay of execution for the many millions of unemployed Americans. After that, thanks to Congressional Republicans, we are completely on our own. Sounds to me like it's time to vote the bums out.