Should people be entitled to....

[Robert Maxwell]

Reasons I've been denied jobs in the past:

-- Overqualfied, afraid I was going to bolt when a better paying gig came along.

I've had that.

-- Worked for their competitor, how do they know I'm going a corporate spy. I left Regal and a bit over a year later applied for a part-time weekend usher job at a Carmike much closer to home.

Don't they know if they paid you enough you'd just spill your guts about your former employer? They should look on the bright side!

-- Based on my resume, I might get their (the interviewer's) job. The supervisor giving the interview was on probation and was looking for a-- in her words-- "total fuck up" so that the company would keep her.

My wife missed out on a job because of that. The interviewer was a moron, to the point where a supervisor noticed how my wife was breezing right through it. The interviewer "lost her application" afterward.

-- Married to a immigrant, and they're a "American" company and don't support "Green card marriages". That one was a interview I got through a business contact who had a friend that needed database and website manager Te were chit chatting about the company, and he started talking about this and that and the topic came up. Should have told him I was trying to ditch my US citizenship, he would have had a heart attack.

Is that even a legal thing for a company to admit to? Good lord.

-- A common one in the last 5 years, my MS. Which has shown up as "we don't want you flipping out on the clock" to "We don't need a retard on the clock" to "What happens if you drop dead on the job?" and my favorite "I don't want to catch your disease."

Ignorant asses.

I have since took to carrying a hidden pocket recorder to all job interviews and contract bids. Right now though, it's mostly "We'd love you hire you, but we're cutting hours" or "This location is closing in <insert time frame> and we don't need cashiers we need a tear down crew"

Damn, I really don't blame you there, sounds like you've had some epically shitty experiences.

 

[RoJoHen]

Did you at least get the job as part of the tear-down crew?

 

[TheLonelySquire]

If you were unemployed, you'd have to live on it. Not that many options.

That's why I do whatever needs to be done not to be in that position.

Anyone, bar no-one, can end up unemployed; it is neither impossible nor, for many, even that remote a possibility. Nor do you (usually) get there by being lazy, having poor job performance, or in fact much to do with you personally at all. Often you find yourself laid off because your employer is cost cutting and using the system of 'cut the most expensive employees' or the 'last one in, first one out' approach. Neither of which are really much to do with your approach to work at all.

I understand this is an extreme economic time but at some point it should end.

Why, is unemployment usually 0%?

Well, I guess your last question answers mine as to whether you feel entitled.

 

[SeerSGB]

Did you at least get the job as part of the tear-down crew?

Yes and no. I "got the job", then the day before the crew was to start they called up and said that the current staff wanted to stay on and do the tear down and work till the end. They were supposed to have called back, they never did.

 

[Misfit Toy]

Why, is unemployment usually 0%?

Well, I guess your last question answers mine as to whether you feel entitled.

Are you entitled to feel superior to those who receive unemployment benefits?

 

[freak]

I don't know anyone that's has been on unemployment that wanted to stay on unemployment. Sure, there's some ass-hats out that see it as a chance to kick back and cash in, but the people I know-- friends, family-- that have had to deal with it weren't thinking "Free money". They were thinking "Shit, how am I going pay the car payment...ah fuck the mortgage's due...well, guess I'll let the medical go, that or we're not eating this month". They were busting their ass to get off it, going to interviews and attending "retraining" at the Unemployment office was nearly a daily routine for them and they jumped at the first job that would have them.

Yeah, unemployment doesn't pay shit. It really doesn't. It's very difficult to survive on it, because it's only ever a fraction of what you were paid before. The only people I've seen who think unemployment is a cakewalk are those who have been lucky enough not to lose a job.

It's no fun. Not at all. It's an utterly miserable experience. The people having "funemployment" are the exception, not the rule.

The people on "Funemployment" (I'm so ripping off that term ) are the type of burn outs that would be useless whether they were drawing benefits or not.

I've actually turned down unemployment once, back before I was married, I told them I didn't want the check (had savings, my parents were helping out on the basics, and I didn't have a family), I wantd the job training. They got me enrolled in school and helped me get my certifications and paid for part of my retraining. For me the education and oppourtunities it opened up was worth more than the check.

Hmmm..maybe I should go over to my unemployment office next week(when I have to extend my benefits for the last time) and try to see if there are jobs available in the training building. Maybe I'll find something that way?

 

[SeerSGB]

It doesn't hurt to talk to them. If nothing else, if you're interest in updating your skill sets or a career shift, they might be able to help you.

 

[JiNX-01]

Yes, I'm for pretty much unlimited unemployment.

Personally, I was shocked to learn (through the wonderful cultural educator that is TNZ) that the US has limited unemployment. What exactly are you and your family supposed to do when it runs out if you haven't found a job? Starve?

Once your unemployment runs out, you have to go on other forms of assistance, such as:

• Food stamps
• Section 8 housing
• Medicaid
• TANF (welfare payments)

However, you are usually required to spend down all savings and extraneous assets before you can get those. You have to be pretty much destitute before you can qualify for those things.

Yes, in the United States you have to be financially ruined before you are "entitled" to assistance ... and good luck pulling yourself back up once you hit bottom.

 

[JiNX-01]

Dark Journey said:

If anyone read a recent post of mine they know my federal extension was cancelled and I had to reopen a new state claim that pays me 60% less and I basically hit the roof. I don't want to sound entitled, but I can't remotely live on $103 a week and the main reason why I was so upset was because the extension was cancelled because of that two month job I worked. I felt like I was being punished for actually working.

NYS punishes you for working. If you work for two hours on any day (even at minimum wage), you lose the entire unemployment benefit for that day.

 

[TheLonelySquire]

Why, is unemployment usually 0%?

Well, I guess your last question answers mine as to whether you feel entitled.

Are you entitled to feel superior to those who receive unemployment benefits?

Not at all. I've received them myself in the past. Nothing at all wrong with a hand up.

 

[Robert Maxwell]

Dark Journey said:

If anyone read a recent post of mine they know my federal extension was cancelled and I had to reopen a new state claim that pays me 60% less and I basically hit the roof. I don't want to sound entitled, but I can't remotely live on $103 a week and the main reason why I was so upset was because the extension was cancelled because of that two month job I worked. I felt like I was being punished for actually working.

NYS punishes you for working. If you work for two hours on any day (even at minimum wage), you lose the entire unemployment benefit for that day.

Yeah, that's the problem with a lot of benefit programs. They punish you for trying to get off of them.

 

[TGTheodore]

Having been underemployed for two years now, I can agree with everything everyone has said about unemployment not being a "free pass" as well as being a royal pain in the ass when you DO try to better your situation.

I got an amazingly small-time second part-time job this year. It averages 4-5 hours per MONTH. And twice that boss has screwed up my employment info to the State Unemployment Office and this piss-ant little job has cost me $3000 in benefits over the last ten months.

How? Because in California it usually takes 6-8 weeks to fix a CLERICAL ERROR. And during that time all benefits are suspended. You get zip-i-doo-dah. NADA. And by the time it gets cleared up the deadline to apply for most of the "back benefits" has passed.

Try living on zero help for six weeks when every other financial venue has been exhausted.

At 54, I've done SO much in my work life that I don't get considered for ANYTHING. I have 15 versions of my resume so I can pattern the right one for the right position. I hate having to "dumb down" my accomplishments.

My benefits were recently, finally, exhausted. When my "new claim" automatically went through, my maximum award per week is now $49 (down from $405 per week). And if I earn over $49 in a week, I get zero and have to go through another one-week waiting period without anything at all.

Yeah. Unemployment's a real joy. I love sitting back every day in my month-to-month apartment, packed and ready to move if I can't make rent this month, sipping on mint juleps and laughing at all the "suckers" who have to work.

--Ted

P.S. By the way, the first time I ever applied for unemployment (about 20 years ago), I couldn't go through with it. I felt like a "leech". Like everyone else ignorant of what poverty is like, I was too proud. I still feel like a leech, but at least I'm a leech with a roof over my head -- at least until Thanksgiving weekend. Ah, irony ...

 

[StarryEyed]

That's why I do whatever needs to be done not to be in that position.

Bully for you. However IF you were ever in that position, your previous attempts to avoid that would be for naught.

Oh, anyone could lose a job. No doubt about it. I have deep sympathy for everyone who is legitimately seeking work. I just think adults are ultimately responsible for themselves.

Lets examine this from a practical point of view.

What happens when these people get cut off? What happens when they can no longer afford shelter or even food? What do they do?

When people are pushed the point of desperation, base survival instincts kick-in. They will cheat, rob, even kill to survive. The best-case scenario is that they don't hurt anyone and end up in jail - where they will be supported by the state anyway - for a time at least.

They will be released eventually and end up back on the street in the same desperate situation except worse. They'll have a criminal record now which will make finding a job even tougher. Their mental state will be even poorer than it was before because their hearts will be hardened by their prison experience. What will they do now?

 

[Cakes488]

I don't know anyone that's has been on unemployment that wanted to stay on unemployment. Sure, there's some ass-hats out that see it as a chance to kick back and cash in, but the people I know-- friends, family-- that have had to deal with it weren't thinking "Free money". They were thinking "Shit, how am I going pay the car payment...ah fuck the mortgage's due...well, guess I'll let the medical go, that or we're not eating this month". They were busting their ass to get off it, going to interviews and attending "retraining" at the Unemployment office was nearly a daily routine for them and they jumped at the first job that would have them.

Yeah, unemployment doesn't pay shit. It really doesn't. It's very difficult to survive on it, because it's only ever a fraction of what you were paid before. The only people I've seen who think unemployment is a cakewalk are those who have been lucky enough not to lose a job.

It's no fun. Not at all. It's an utterly miserable experience. The people having "funemployment" are the exception, not the rule.

That's right...unemployment is there to supplement your savings that you've saved for just this situation....that you don't have a job. It's not meant to fully support you and LOL it doesn't....

 

[Miss Chicken]

Maybe you guys could comment on what you think of how income is dealt with when it comes to our unemployed -

As a Newstart Allowance customer you can earn up to $62 per fortnight before tax before your payment is affected.
Income between $62 and $250 reduces your fortnightly payment by 50 cents in the dollar. Income above $250 reduces your payment by 60 cents in the dollar.

However these reductions only start when you have run out of working credits

When your total income from all sources is less than $48 a fortnight, you will automatically build up working credits. When you have income from work, you can use your credits to reduce the effect that income has on your Centrelink payment.
Under Working Credit one credit equals one dollar. You are able to collect up to 1000 credits, and for every credit you have you can earn one extra dollar before your Centrelink payment is reduced. For example, if you have 450 working credits, you can earn an extra $450 before your Centrelink payment is reduced.

If an unempoyed person got a part-time job were they were earning $100 a week, and they had accumulated $1000 working credits, for the first ten weeks of their job there would be no reduction in their payments but after that the their fortnightly payments would start to reduce. As they are earning $200 a fortnight their payment would be reduced by $69 a fortnight (the first $62 earned is untouched, while their unemployment payment is reduced by 50c for every dollar for the remaining $138).

 

[Robert Maxwell]

That actually seems like a brilliant idea--gives you time to get back on your feet and doesn't punish you as soon as you find work. How well does it work in Oz?

Needless to say, the system in the US is absurdly broken. It's there, but they make it such a pain to use it's just about not worth it, and if you don't find a full-time job in a hurry you're fucked.

 

[SeerSGB]

I don't know anyone that's has been on unemployment that wanted to stay on unemployment. Sure, there's some ass-hats out that see it as a chance to kick back and cash in, but the people I know-- friends, family-- that have had to deal with it weren't thinking "Free money". They were thinking "Shit, how am I going pay the car payment...ah fuck the mortgage's due...well, guess I'll let the medical go, that or we're not eating this month". They were busting their ass to get off it, going to interviews and attending "retraining" at the Unemployment office was nearly a daily routine for them and they jumped at the first job that would have them.

Yeah, unemployment doesn't pay shit. It really doesn't. It's very difficult to survive on it, because it's only ever a fraction of what you were paid before. The only people I've seen who think unemployment is a cakewalk are those who have been lucky enough not to lose a job.

It's no fun. Not at all. It's an utterly miserable experience. The people having "funemployment" are the exception, not the rule.

That's right...unemployment is there to supplement your savings that you've saved for just this situation....that you don't have a job. It's not meant to fully support you and LOL it doesn't....

Except for when your out of work for longer than you planned for and your savings is gone...then you're learning to love Mac+Cheese and Ramen noodles. I know people that are going on their 2nd year without a job.

 

[KiraDax]

That's right...unemployment is there to supplement your savings that you've saved for just this situation....that you don't have a job. It's not meant to fully support you and LOL it doesn't....

I work retail. 3/4 my monthly income goes to bills, the rest to toiletries and little frivolities to keep me sane. Savings accumulates very slowly, no matter how hard I squeeze.

Couple of years ago, I was out of work for two months after having major surgery. I applied for benefits then, and guess what? I wasn't eligible because I had roughly a month's worth of bill coverage put aside and lived with my also week to week with no money to spare parents.

BECAUSE I couldn't get assistance during my down time, I was forced to empty my savings to cover monthly bills. All spare money since has gone to paying off medical expenses.

I've got $200 in savings at the moment. If I were forced to go off work and try for benefits again, I'd get the same refusal because of that.

Unless you were already rich and putting aside small mountains every week, you can't live off of savings, even supplemented.

 

[Amaris]

Yeah, unemployment doesn't pay shit. It really doesn't. It's very difficult to survive on it, because it's only ever a fraction of what you were paid before. The only people I've seen who think unemployment is a cakewalk are those who have been lucky enough not to lose a job.

It's no fun. Not at all. It's an utterly miserable experience. The people having "funemployment" are the exception, not the rule.

That's right...unemployment is there to supplement your savings that you've saved for just this situation....that you don't have a job. It's not meant to fully support you and LOL it doesn't....

Except for when your out of work for longer than you planned for and your savings is gone...then you're learning to love Mac+Cheese and Ramen noodles. I know people that are going on their 2nd year without a job.

Going on 14 months for me.

J.

 

[RoJoHen]

Unless you were already rich and putting aside small mountains every week, you can't live off of savings, even supplemented.

I wouldn't go this far, not for everyone. If you start saving early enough (like when you're 16-18-years old and don't have many, if any, bills), you should be able have a decent amount stored away.

I have been living week-to-week (more or less) for the last 6 years, but I still have about $6000 in savings that I made when I was in high school and had no expenses. If I was suddenly unemployed, I would be fine for several months before I needed to start freaking out.

Now, I don't have medical expenses, which I know makes a big difference. But it's still possible to live jobless for a while if you prepare for it early on.