About 12 million unemployed Americans will suddenly no longer receive any aid on Boxing Day, when the spring support measures taken by the federal government in the face of the pandemic expire, warns a study published Wednesday by The Century Foundation. Democratic think tank.
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Faced with massive layoffs and plummeting income caused by the confinement, two measures, which expire in December, were notably put in place in March.
On the one hand, unemployment rights had been extended to workers who were not normally entitled to them, such as those in the “
gig economy”.
”(Task work), symbolized by Uber.
This aid will be paid to 7.3 million people at the end of December, according to calculations by The Century Foundation.
On the other hand, the duration of payment of benefits had been extended by thirteen weeks, or just under three months, which should affect 4.6 million Americans at Christmas.
Unemployment benefits are paid in the United States by each of the fifty states, which set their amount and duration, six months for the better off.
In total since March, 40 million people, or one in four workers, have benefited from one of these two aids, notes the study.
State revenues in free fall
The Century Foundation adds that an additional 4.4 million people will find themselves without resources before the fateful date, with their unemployment rights terminated.
They will however be 2.9 million to see their allowance paid for another thirteen weeks.
According to the study, this program will still be in place at the end of December in eighteen of the country's fifty states, in which the unemployment rate is particularly high.
States must contribute up to 50% of these payments, which is complicated when many have seen a drastic drop in their income, since the taxes they receive have fallen, note the authors of this study.
Additional weekly assistance of $ 600 for all unemployed has already expired at the end of July, replaced in only some states by a smaller amount.
If elected Republican and Democratic Congressmen did not find a compromise by then on a new plan to support the economy, it would be the first time, among all recent recessions, that aid has been cut so soon after the start. of the crisis, details the study.
"
During the four previous recessions, (they) were offered to workers for at least three years after the onset of the recession,
" note its authors.
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This aid ends as the Covid-19 progresses again in a worrying way, pushing many cities and states to impose new restrictions.
The unemployment rate fell to 6.9% in October, but 11.1 million Americans remain unemployed, a third of them for more than six months.
SEE ALSO
- United States: Joe Biden promises an "immediate" support plan for the economy and 3 million jobs