Jobless Benefits Ending For Thousands In Michigan
Financial help is running out for many of Michigan's unemployeed. The State of Michigan will stop taking new extended unemployment benefits applications after this Saturday, since Congress failed to renew the program.
The state Department of Energy, Labor and Economic Growth says about 162,000 Michiganians exhausted their jobless benefits from January through November and about 181,500 will exhaust their benefits from this December through April 2011, barring an extension by Congress.
According to the Michigan League for Human Services that's more than1,100 a day who will lose vital support for their families, from now til spring.
"We have too many hardworking people in Michigan who have lost their jobs and are unable to find new jobs through no fault of their own. During this ongoing period of economic turmoil, it's important to these workers, their families, and Michigan's economy, that these emergency benefits continue," said MLHS president and CEO Sharon Parks.
"At no time since the end of WWII has Congress failed to extend emergency benefits while unemployment remained above 7.2 percent," Park said.
Governor Jennifer Granholm wrote congressional leaders last week, asking for an extension of the federal Emergency Unemployment Compensation program.
A new fact sheet with county-by-county numbers has been posted on the MLHS website at this link.
