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Unemployment benefits may be adding to job seekers laziness
wptv ^ | 04/19/10 | wptv

Posted on 04/19/2010 5:08:59 PM PDT by TornadoAlley3

WEST PALM BEACH, FL-- Administrative assistant Vicky Fonseca says she wants to work- but she doesn't want to work just anywhere.

"I want good benefits,"Fonseca said. "I wouldn't want to work somewhere where I didn't feel comfortable."

Some would say beggars shouldn't be choosers.

But when Uncle Sam is paying you $300 a week with virtually no strings attached, job seekers can afford to turn offers down.

And Fonseca has.

"I had an offer but it was in Broward County," Fonseca said. "It is too far for me and the pay rate is not going to be enough."

Career counselor Sue Romanos works her tail off to find the unemployed like Fonseca jobs.

"It is shocking," Romanos said. "I would never have believed it a year ago if you would have told me that people would be turning down jobs."

Romanos has been the CEO of Career Xchange, an award winning career placement agency that serves Broward and Dade Counties- for 21 years.

She says she's never seen unemployment benefits "drag on" as they are now. She says the benefits are crippling many of her candidates.

"The candidates have varying reasons for not wanting the job offered," Romanos said. "It's not the right job or the salary. To tell you the truth I think they are very happy collecting and not wanting to work."

And they are certainly collecting. President Obama signed an $18 billion jobless benefits bill last week. It extends unemployment an additional 99 weeks- averaging $335 a check.

"In the long run staying home so long is going to effect people," Romanos said. "Employers will look at them and see this as a sign of their behavior. Plus they will lose some skills."

Fonsaca- who has been out of work three months- swears that won't be her- as long as the job is a right fit.

"I wouldn't want to take something just to take it," Fonsaca said.


TOPICS: Culture/Society; Government; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: change; florida; hope; laziness; npftl; unemployment
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1 posted on 04/19/2010 5:09:00 PM PDT by TornadoAlley3
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To: TornadoAlley3

Unemployment, plus food stamps, medicaide and a cash part time job can go a long way. We know one family that is doing this..


2 posted on 04/19/2010 5:12:12 PM PDT by Oldexpat
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To: TornadoAlley3

Democrats specialize in creating disincentives with our money. What they don’t seem to understand is that it’s not possible for everybody to live off of everybody else.


3 posted on 04/19/2010 5:12:34 PM PDT by Spok (Free Range Republican)
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To: TornadoAlley3

“Career counselor Sue Romanos works her tail off to find the unemployed like Fonseca jobs. “

Must be the one unemployment office lady that works.


4 posted on 04/19/2010 5:14:52 PM PDT by driftdiver (I could eat it raw, but why do that when I have a fire.)
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To: TornadoAlley3

That is why they used to limit unemployment benefits to six months. You had six months to find a good job. If you didn’t, you took what you could get and worked up form there. I think we should go back to that.

Disclaimer: Both my wife and I have been drawing unemployment and COBRA subsidies for 15 months. To the tune of almost 60k annualized. I start a new job on the 26th, a much better job then I had before.


5 posted on 04/19/2010 5:17:25 PM PDT by JoSixChip (It's time to embrace the madness! The sooner we default the sooner we can reorganize.)
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To: driftdiver

A whole new crowd of welfare recipients living off the gubmint.

We don’t need no steenkin self respect!!!!!!!1


6 posted on 04/19/2010 5:19:08 PM PDT by shelterguy
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To: TornadoAlley3
Massachusetts pays the highest unemployment. About $627 per week, IIRC, maxed out for a single.

Yes, Mass. is one of those states in series financial trouble.

7 posted on 04/19/2010 5:20:58 PM PDT by mountn man (The pleasure you get from life, is equal to the attitude you put into it.)
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I guess I just don't understand this line of thinking... 4 1/2 years ago, I was out of work for 3 months. I was starting to have to consider putting my house up for sale and moving to an area with a job market more suited to my job skills. Luckily I was able to find a job... Though I had to take a massive cut in pay. I've made some of it back up in the last few years.

I have to say that I certainly wasn't making $300 a week... I was getting $200 a week (taxable), which was, IIRC, just enough to pay my COBRA payments.

Mark

8 posted on 04/19/2010 5:21:07 PM PDT by MarkL (Do I really look like a guy with a plan?)
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To: Oldexpat
At our neighborhood block part the other day it was very illuminating to hear a couple of formerly-working-class guys discussing how to milk the Florida unemployment system.

We're very screwed.

9 posted on 04/19/2010 5:22:59 PM PDT by The Duke
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To: shelterguy

I know quite a few people that have been unemployed for a long time and are not turning anything down.


10 posted on 04/19/2010 5:24:15 PM PDT by driftdiver (I could eat it raw, but why do that when I have a fire.)
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To: TornadoAlley3

“Unemployment benefits may be adding to job seekers laziness”

That’s the whole freaking point. Make them dependent on the government.

Sorry _uck’s!


11 posted on 04/19/2010 5:26:06 PM PDT by diverteach (D.C. has become Jonestown)
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To: TornadoAlley3
Unemployment benefits may be adding to job seekers laziness

Duh. If you subsidize something (unemployment), you get more of it.

12 posted on 04/19/2010 5:29:11 PM PDT by Hoodat (For the weapons of our warfare are mighty in God for pulling down strongholds.)
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To: driftdiver

The only reason Ms. Romanos has a job is because other don’t.


13 posted on 04/19/2010 5:33:46 PM PDT by John-Irish ("Shame of him who thinks of it''.)
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To: driftdiver

“””I know quite a few people that have been unemployed for a long time and are not turning anything down.”””””””

They are the rare ones, unfortunately.


14 posted on 04/19/2010 5:34:38 PM PDT by shelterguy
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To: TornadoAlley3

This looks like a job for Captain Obvious.


15 posted on 04/19/2010 5:36:12 PM PDT by Carl LaFong (Experts say experts should be ignored.)
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To: JoSixChip
I think you do not understand what a 17% unemployment rate means.

The issue isn't getting a "good job", it's getting "any job".

16 posted on 04/19/2010 5:37:42 PM PDT by muawiyah ("Git Out The Way")
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To: TornadoAlley3
Unemployment benefits may be adding to job seekers laziness


17 posted on 04/19/2010 5:40:09 PM PDT by dfwgator
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To: The Duke

You should be on the employer side of those kinds. Extremely frustrating to see them milking the system when you know they are working under the table but cannot prove it.


18 posted on 04/19/2010 5:40:18 PM PDT by driftdiver (I could eat it raw, but why do that when I have a fire.)
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To: muawiyah

Actually after having been layed off for 15 months, I consider myself an expert on the subject.


19 posted on 04/19/2010 5:40:31 PM PDT by JoSixChip (It's time to embrace the madness! The sooner we default the sooner we can reorganize.)
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To: TornadoAlley3

But of course, let’s blame the people who can’t find a job, can’t pay their mortgage and are in jeopardy of losing their home. Their kids’ college funds are down to nothing, but they’re just loving being out of work.


20 posted on 04/19/2010 5:44:17 PM PDT by Carley (I'll keep clinging to the constitution, my guns and my religion, thank you.)
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