A recent survey released by Morning Consult found that 1.8 million Americans have turned down jobs even though they were unemployed saying, essentially: “I receive enough unemployment benefits without having to work.”
In other words, despite claims from the Biden administration, federal unemployment benefits are helping fuel the current hiring crisis.
The benefits in question were made possible as part of the $1.9 trillion COVID relief bill passed earlier this year, which provided weekly $300 unemployment payments on top of state benefits – a number negotiated DOWN to $300 a week, mind you. Congressional Democrats wanted more.
Unsurprisingly, when business owners complained of their difficulty hiring workers and unemployment remained high despite widespread job availability, critics began to blame the federal benefits. Indeed, Republicans have argued for months that federal unemployment benefits are helping keep Americans from going back to work. The Morning Consult survey suggests the GOP is right.
The Morning Consult poll surveyed 5,000 adults in June. Of the respondents who were collecting unemployment benefits, 29% said they turned down job offers during the COVID-19 pandemic. In response to a follow-up question, 45% of that group said they turned down jobs specifically because of the generosity of the benefits.
Citing concerns about the wrong incentives as outlined in the poll, dozens of Republican-led states across the country have opted to reject the federal benefits.
“Here we have solid confirmation that millions of people have remained unemployed because of the federal government’s reckless expansion of the welfare state,” wrote Brad Polumbo of the Foundation for Economic Education. “This is, on its face, even more vindication for the many conservative-leaning states that canceled the benefits early.”
The Foundation noted that the federal benefits in question are set to expire later this year in September.
Polumbo points to the date as a telling one. The poll, he said, “offers even more compelling weight to the argument that the federal welfare expansion ought to be allowed to lapse in September as scheduled.”
In May, several Senate Republicans introduced the “Get Americans Back to Work Act,” hoping to fight against possible renewal of a program that was intended to be ‘temporary.’
Numerous Senate Republicans have cited business complaints about a ‘labor crisis’ and the difficulty in hiring. Continuing to throw money at the problem will not get Americans back to work or help the economy recover from the government-ordered pandemic shutdowns.
Further, the Bureau of Labor statistics has released a continued rise in inflation, noting the levels not been as bad since the 2008 financial crisis. In response, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce advocates concern and an immediate end to the federal unemployment benefits.
In a statement, the Chamber has suggested that: “Congress should act to end the extra $300 federal unemployment benefit immediately. States, as some already have, can end those payments unilaterally and use the funds to provide an incentive for workers to return, such as a return-to-work bonus and assistance with childcare costs.”
We agree with the Chamber that “Rising wages are usually good,” but in this case businesses are forced to compete with overly-generous government benefits – getting paid not to work.
Let’s get jobs and the economy back where they belong.
That is the message. This is The Messenger.
