71 Percent of Long-Term Unemployed Workers Out a Year or More
Posted on October 5th, 2010
An analysis released by Pew Economic Policy Group found thatamonglong-term unemployed workers (those unemployed six or more months), 71 percent were out of work for a year or more. According to the group’s analysis of data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, this represents 4.4 million of the nation’s unemployed population. Unfortunately, with new statistics released this morning from the Labor Department, additional workers are now in danger of suffering the same fate.
The Long-Term Unemployed Struggle to Find Work
The new statistics offered by Pew showed that the number oflong-term unemployed workers has increased significantly in the past year. As of August 2010, unemployed workers who hadn’t founda job in at least a year jumpedto 30 percent from 23 percent just in December 2009.
This means even though the job market as a whole has picked up a bit, many will continue to struggle with finding work–and others, depending on their circumstances,may not find work again.
PayrollsDrop by 95,000 in September
According to a report released by the Labor Department Friday morning, 95,000 people lost their jobs in Sept. 2010, forcing the unemployment rate to hold steady at 9.6 percent.The majority of jobs lost (76,000) came from cuts in local government. This is the largest government cut in 28 years.
Survivingif You’re Among the Long-Term Unemployed
There’s no doubt that being among the long-term unemployed is extremely difficult. With the COBRA subsidy cut for the newly unemployed and unemployment benefits not lasting forever for any worker, it’s necessary to find ways make ends meet. Here are some ideas to consider:
- Think about temping: If you’re in between jobs and have been for a long time, you could consider signing up with a temp agency or even substitute teaching. The temporary jobs could help you pay your bills and maybe even add a few dollars to your savings accounts while giving you an opportunity to stay busy.
- Draw up your own business plan: When you’re not applying for new jobs, you might sit down and think about what you really love to do and are good and then think about making a business out of it. There are tons of stories of people who were laid off then found true happiness by starting their own business. This could be you, too.
- Try to stay away from your retirement funds: It may be extremely tempting to want to tap your 401(k) or IRA in this situation, but doing this not only poses a number of tax issues,it also threatensyour chances offinancial security down the line.
While some say the recession is officially over, unemployed workers probably beg to differ. If you’re one of them, try your best to remain diligent and stay positive as youtrudge aheadwith the 14.8 million others who look for stability in this tough economy.
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Tags: 71 Percent, Unemployed Workers, Year
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