99ers and Tier 5 Unemployed Americans Continue to Look for Help in Troubled Economy
Posted on | July 27, 2010 | 7 Comments
Recently the unemployment benefits extension helped over 2 million people gain access to unemployment insurance that could help them to pay bills and survive in the current troubled economy. Unfortunately, there are still around 1.5 million “99ers” who are looking for a Tier 5 unemployment extension but that has yet to happen.
At the present time, those who file for unemployment benefits can receive these insurance benefits up to 99 weeks or four tiers. For those “99ers” who have exhausted these resources there are not many places to turn. With Robert Shiller, professor of economics at Yale, pointing out that a double dip recession is likely in the future it should come as no surprise to see Americans struggling to find work.
The likelihood of a double dip recession is over 50% according to Shiller. If the economy does go back into a recession then there is a very good chance that unemployment could start to climb as businesses scramble to remain profitable. If this is truly the case then the number of “99ers” will continue to increase and the call for an unemployment extension will be heard loud and clear.
For those who have a story to tell about the job hunt or struggles being unemployed there are websites that allow you to voice your opinion and tell your story.
Author: Alan Lake
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7 Responses to “99ers and Tier 5 Unemployed Americans Continue to Look for Help in Troubled Economy”
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July 27th, 2010 @ 1:41 pm
WHY DO THEY CALL US 99ER’S? I am 53 years old with a 10 year old son alone. I have a PhD. cannot find work. Lost my house. Lost my belongings. Lost my car. Lost my job. What else can I lose – I pray not my little boy because of any stable work life. Yes I did receive unemployment. I ONLY RECEIVED 44 WEEKS AND THAT WAS IT, AM I AM CALLED A 99ER. All of the 99er’s as we are called did not get 99 weeks of unemployment. I believed that is what everyone thinks. The media makes it sound like we received 99 total weeks of unemployment. That is not true for many of us out there. Like I said. I am called a 99er and only received 44 weeks. I call unemployment. They told me in tier 1 – I got 80 percent. In tier 2 – I got 50 percent. In tier 3 – I got 20 percent. And in tier 4, I got 40 percent. I worked 38 years of my life nonstop. Served in the military for my country, was in 9-11, helped out. Done a lot for people, my country act, and never in a million years would think that I would be jobless, or have my country leave me at a time like this. God knows that I want to work so badly. I will clean toilets and whatever. I just want work and jobs are not there. I have a PhD and never act nor think that I am better than anyone. But looking for work, so many places tell me that they know I will leave them if something better comes along. I will always stick with any job that is there for me. I need to support my son and myself. When you jump jobs, it is not always what it may seem. Age discrimination has played a significant role in not being able to land a job. Most of us are in our late 40s, 50s and 60s. That, coupled with being over qualified for any low paying job we apply for is destroying the baby boomer middle class. Lately, there have been temporary agencies that have told us their clients do not want to hire anyone that has been unemployed for a long period of time. What are we supposed to do?
Congress has bailed out the banks, auto manufactures, AIG and Wall Street, they have sent money to Haiti, they have spent billions on two wars and no one worried about the deficit and the money that was being spent. Now, to help people who elected Washington into office, Congress argues over where the money will come from and forcing us all into poverty. We want to be recognized as the hard working Americans we once were. You have taken away our dignity, our love for our country and the faith we once had for the lawmakers we voted into office.
Please I pray for our COUNTRY, THE UNITED STATES – THAT HELPS ALL OTHER COUNTRYS, WALL STREET, BANKS ETC. TO PLEASE HELP US AMERICANS. WE NEED A TIER 5. WE NEED YOUR HELP TO PLEASE PASS A TIER 5. ELECTIONS ARE COMING UP. WE THE UNEMPLOYED, NEED TO VOTE AND BE THIER FOR ALL OF THOSE THERE FOR US. TIER 5 PLEASE.
Christine Owens, executive director of the National Employment Law Project said that, according to the Congressional Budget Office, unemployment insurance is the most effective form of economic stimulus, creating $1.93 in GDP for every $1 in benefits. “Our real deficit is a jobs deficit,” she said on a conference call with reporters. “It is urgent that Congress act to restore the extended unemployment and COBRA programs as quickly as possible.” I do not even know what cobra is.
SOMEONE ELSE WROTE THIS PART. THIS SUMS UP TRUELY AS TO WHAT IS GOING ON. PLEASE READ:
Senators and Representatives:
You should be ashamed of yourself, and here’s why:
You have decided to ignore the people you reduced to poverty. The longest unemployed workers did not create this depression, you did. You did this with your failure to regulate the banks, health industry, and corporations. People who were fully employed, paying taxes, and raising families are now paying the price for your negligence. They trusted you to keep something like this from happening. You failed them.
Now you are deliberately failing them again. This may be a recession for you, but it’s a depression for them. You know this depression will last longer than until March, yet you have no plans to add additional unemployment tiers to keep these people from becoming increasingly destitute. Tens of thousands will begin to lose all financial support on March 14. You know with full clarity that these benefits are the only money keeping food on their tables. You know that their benefits run out in March, and that these American families will be on the path to shelters and soup kitchens.
…and this is not of their making. They’re not to blame. You are.
…and you’re about to discount them again by allowing their benefits to end with Tier IV.
By the way, don’t pride yourself on extending the current benefits for the more recently unemployed, as included in the Job Bill. Of course you should do this, but as you know, the bill as it is written will not help any of those who have been the longest and hardest hit by this depression. The Job Bill only half addresses the unemployed, and 50% is an F.
Please make sure that the only choice for Americans who want to work is either a job or unemployment benefits. Don’t end benefits until there are jobs for them. As of now, there is only 1 job for every 6 unemployed workers. Take care of these victims.
ADD A TIER V
The senate is planning another vacation soon. What a job. How many weeks do the Senators get? Does anyone know? And with our country in such shambles wouldn’t they take less time off till they fix some of the problems. Help pass a Tier 5. Step up big for the people of America. More fat cat politicians doing nothing. Always on a vacation. Pretend that you are out of work- Now go look for a job – I bet that you will not find a job. PLEASE GO TRY TO FIND ONE. THEN YOU WILL SEE MY EVERYDAY LIFE. TRYING TO FIND ANY KIND OF WORK. BECAUSE YOU SAY YOU CARE ABOUT THIS COUNTY, GIVE UP YOUR FAT PAYCHECKS; TAKE A 50 PERCENT PAY CUT. MAYBE THIS WILL HELP. WE HAD PRESIDENTS THAT TOOK NO SALERY. I’M JUST SAYING TO GIVE UP HALF, I WOULD NOT WISH WHAT MILLIONS OF US UNEMPLOYED GO THRU ON YOU. NOT NOW, NOT EVER. SO How about a tier 5 big guys. Have another nice vacation wonderful politician. You can find us Americans out on the street begging for change anytime you need us. Even to vote for you, we will be here on the street.
July 27th, 2010 @ 3:00 pm
It will not be until we are well into the next GREAT DEPRESSION before Congress will acknowledge that there is an unemployment problem. They feel that if they ignore it then it’ll just go away.
99ersupport.proboards.com is a new site to band together and maybe get messages across to Congress that the problem already exists.
July 27th, 2010 @ 3:10 pm
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The time for a revolution has come… The unemployed are being punished for something we didn’t do. The big money crooks are living in splendor on taxpayer money bailouts we didn’t approve while we are forced to live in unpleasantness at best. Let’s throw those bums out of office and get some new blood, we can do it as a team!
Our Government can only control us by dividing us. Don’t let them. Don’t let them send our children off to die in another BS War for nothing more then oil money. I’m a fellow 99er and will do everything I can to throw monkey wrenches in this BS System.
Don’t trust the Media as their only lap dogs for the govt.
Republican or Democrat, it’s all the same thing, two parties divide Americans. We need a leader that has the right connections to start the revolution… this will separate the men from the boy’s… We have our work cut out… ready to roll!
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July 27th, 2010 @ 7:01 pm
Just wait till we start looting stores out of deseperation to feed our families then congress might do something !! Oh yeah thell just blame president Obama.
July 27th, 2010 @ 7:09 pm
Guys feel free to surf over to unemployedandtrying.com and voice your opinion. We will feel free to put a completely unique post of your story if you will send an email as well.
http://www.unemployedandtrying.com/
July 28th, 2010 @ 2:15 pm
I’m a 99er also…The problem is that an economy is like an airplane in flight. If the airplane flies too slow, it stalls and falls to the ground and everyone inside dies. If it goes too fast, the wings tear off and it falls to the ground and everyone inside dies. If our government should suddenly stop increasing the deficit (slow down the airplane), it would have to more than double our taxes to pay its current obligations. If this happened, the economy would implode. So, what happens when several million unemployed people and tens of millions who receive some form of government assistance each month suddenly receive no money? How safe will America be? How angry will people become? Can you imagine long lines of people standing outside Walmart begging for food? Can you imagine being robbed at gun point for groceries as you exit a food store? Can you imagine gangs holding “gated communities” hostage within their gates until their financial demands are met? Can you image hospitals and doctors offices closed because there is no insurance and people cannot pay actual costs? When the government tells a huge number of people they will no longer receive government assistance, what choices will they have for survival? Consider Greece again (even though there has been a temporary respite for Greece by the European Union, the drama is not over – keep an eye on it). We’re doomed either way. You must turn to God for the answer not government for it to will pass.
July 28th, 2010 @ 3:09 pm
What are people suppose to do after 99 weeks of unemployment benefits? Just go live out in the streets and rot with the bums that ARE too lazy to work?
What a lot of people don’t realize it that we lost our jobs due to companies downsizing, outsourcing jobs, or just plain cleaning house for younger blood employees who they won’t have to pay as hefty salary or benefits. People who are in there 50′s like me are never going to get the jobs back that we were good at and loved. Now, we are suppose to be happy taking a part time, minimum wage, no benefits job and go back to what we did when we were teenagers. They need to create good paying replacement jobs with benefits to make things right. Until they can do that, they need to keep extending unemployment benefits.
I feel if nothing is done about this, we are going to see a rise in crime, suicides, and riots. I’m sorry, but this is NOT the American dream.