4.9 Million Reasons to Extend Emergency Jobless Benefits

An estimated 4.9 million jobless workers will lose out on emergency unemployment benefits over the next 12 months if policymakers let the Emergency Unemployment Compensation (EUC) program expire right after Christmas.  Our new report, based on Labor Department data, gives the state-by-state specifics.

The chart below shows how the expiration of EUC will affect jobless workers over the course of the year:

• An estimated 1.3 million jobless workers now receiving EUC will receive no benefits after Christmas week.
• An estimated 1.9 million people receiving regular state unemployment insurance (UI) payments, which typically run for a maximum of six months, will exhaust them in the first half of 2014 before they can find a job.  If EUC expires, these workers will receive no further benefits.
• An estimated 1.6 million people who lose their jobs in the first half of 2014 will exhaust their regular state UI in the second half of the year before they can find a job.  If EUC expires, these workers will receive no further benefits.

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