WASHINGTON — Nearly 1.2 million laid-off Americans applied for state unemployment benefits last week, evidence that the coronavirus keeps forcing companies to slash jobs just as a critical $600 weekly federal jobless payment has expired. The government's report Thursday did offer a smidgen of hopeful news: The number of jobless...
Rent’s Due, Again: Monthly Anxieties Deepen as Aid Falls off
Another month passes. The coronavirus pandemic marches on. And Americans struggling amid the economic fallout once again have to worry as their next rent checks come due Aug. 1. Many left jobless by the crisis are already behind on payments. And the arrival of August brings new anxieties. A supplemental...
California Lawmakers Slam Employment Agency for Slow Payouts
SACRAMENTO — California lawmakers accused the leader of the state's unemployment department of failing the public in a tense hearing Thursday that featured stories of people waiting weeks or months to receive their benefits after losing their jobs because of the pandemic. More than 1.2 million claims, about a fifth...
GOP's Jobless Benefit Plan Could Mean Delays, States Warn
A Republican proposal to slash the $600 weekly benefit boost for those left jobless because of the coronavirus shutdown could result in weeks or even months of delayed payments in some states. Older computer systems that took weeks to set up for the initial federal unemployment enhancement would need to...
California Lawmakers Propose $100 Billion Stimulus Plan
SACRAMENTO — Democrats who control California's Legislature on Monday proposed a $100 billion economic stimulus plan that relies on what they are calling “future tax vouchers” along with speeding up other spending during the coronavirus pandemic. The plan would allow state Treasurer Fiona Ma to issue tax vouchers that proponents...
Little Time, Big Agenda When California Lawmakers Return
SACRAMENTO — California lawmakers are returning to work Monday for a furious five-week sprint that will include contentious debates about police brutality, unemployment benefits, hospital mergers and a moratorium on evictions during the coronavirus pandemic. The state Legislature has shut down twice because of the coronavirus, losing precious time to...
No Virus Bill Yet: White House, GOP at Odds Over Jobless Aid
WASHINGTON — Negotiations over a new COVID-19 rescue bill were in flux Friday after the White House floated cutting an unemployment benefits boost to as little as $100 and President Donald Trump turned to a new priority, adding money to build a new FBI headquarters. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell sent senators...
AP-NORC Poll: Nearly Half Say Jobs Lost to Virus Won't Return
WASHINGTON — Nearly half of Americans whose families experienced a layoff during the coronavirus pandemic now believe those jobs are lost forever, a new poll shows, a sign of increasing pessimism that would translate into roughly 10 million workers needing to find a new employer, if not a new occupation. It's a...
White House Drops Payroll Tax Cut After GOP Allies Object
WASHINGTON — The White House reluctantly dropped its bid to cut Social Security payroll taxes Thursday as Republicans prepared to unveil a $1 trillion COVID-19 rescue package, yielding to opposition to the idea among top Senate allies. “It won’t be in the base bill," said Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, speaking...
Virus Sends Jobless Claims up for First Time Since March
WASHINGTON — The viral pandemic's resurgence caused the number of Americans seeking unemployment benefits to rise last week for the first time in nearly four months, evidence of the deepening economic pain the outbreak is causing. The increase in weekly jobless claims to 1.4 million served to underscore the outsize role the...