Administration eyes ways to help laid-off workers

Source: AP

By CHARLES BABINGTON

WASHINGTON (AP) - The Obama administration is considering steps to ease the burdens of laid-off workers, including possible extensions of unemployment and health benefits, officials said Saturday.

The administration has stopped short of calling for a second economic stimulus package to augment the $787 billion measure approved this year. But with the jobless rate continuing to climb, President Barack Obama said Saturday he is exploring "additional options to promote job creation."

Administration aides said possibilities include:

_extending enhanced unemployment-insurance benefits beyond Dec. 31, when they are set to expire.

_extending a tax credit for first-time home buyers. This credit also is set to expire soon.

Read more: http://apnews.excite.com/article/20091003/D9B3T9L01.html

Let's give them jobs!

Yeah...like that'll happen.

Haven't you heard? The recession's over. If you're like me and are still out of work, just buck up. Everyone needs to make sacrifices.

is what we need

Not sure how the compensation was done then, but I bet tons of people would volunteer to help on infrastructure projects for 3 meals a day and payment of a good portion of the mortgage.

Is anyone in Washington D.C. listening?

I think extending unemployment benefits is good, but the real way to help the unemployed and everyone else is fixing health care.

Health care doesn't put food on the table or clothe families. Job creation is THE issue facing this country. Health care is secondary.

There will need to be people to care for the forgotten once they are at last brought in to the fold.

And these will be more permanent jobs than temporary ones.

I firmly believe that encouraging home buying to everyone will continue the cycle of crippling debt and bankruptcy that was a large factor in getting us in the mess we find ourselves in. Home ownership is OK for some people, but it's not always what it is cracked up to be. Like so many other things, the romanticized version of home ownership overwhelms the reality of it.

Bumping up construction jobs, reducing the number of derelict houses.

But I agree, without job creation, which means requiring goods sold in the US to be made by people with decent wages and benefits and with environment rules in place at the factories, or tariffs that cost as much, and getting rid of almost all H1B visas, there is no economic recovery.

Obama has no guts for this, any more than he has any guts to do anything else.

how about providing some jobs with all that fed money?

How about a new WPA and CCC instead of the trickle down bullshit implemented so far?

How about growing some balls and rescinding the Bush era tax breaks for the wealthy?

a tax credit for first time home buyers? Are you fucking kidding me? That sounds like something the Republicans would come up with.

Obama better get his head out of his ass concerning the economy - a jobless recovery is not a recovery - double digit unemployment is coming, and that's what's going to cost him and his party in the next election...

the many forced into independant-contractor-hood -- no insurance, no other benefits, no unemployment when work dries up, etc.

We need jobs to treat the disease.

heart of the current regime and explains why I will not volunteer for or contribute to Obama in 2012.

Consider these two juxtaposed factoids:

5 million Americans have been unemployed for 6 months or longer

and

Obama has been in office for 9 months

I agree, some government programs would be good - and government programs to cap insurance costs, which in turn help small businesses.

It IS possible to be pro-society and pro-profit, at the same time... it's just a matter of how one looks and works with things.

........by pro-society and pro-profit? That is a very, very vague statement and misleading also. It's like saying mom and apple pie, jeez who wouldn't like that?

is piddling around with extended unemployment benefits instead of passing the damned thing.

At least during a brainstorming session.

How about allowing withdrawals without tax or penalty?

Where the government has to do what corporations refuse to!