Unemployment Extension Standoff Makes N.C. Woman 'Feel Like A Pawn In A Chess Game'

Cathy Millen doesn't appreciate the way Congress toys with the unemployed whenever it's time to reauthorize long-term jobless aid.

"Every time it comes up for renewal, it's like being on a roller coaster that's way out of control," she told HuffPost. "Every time it comes up I feel like a pawn in a chess game."

Extended unemployment benefits will begin to expire at the end of November absent a congressional reauthorization. House Republicans defeated one attempt last week before Congress adjourned for its Thanksgiving break. Lawmakers will have one more day in session to prevent a lapse, which is widely expected.

"My last check will be the week ending Nov. 30 unless they come back on Nov. 29 and miraculously vote an extension," said Millen, who lives in Charlotte, N.C.

State agencies are warning claimants that there will be no more Emergency Unemployment Compensation or Extended Benefits, which combined provide up to 53 weeks of federally-funded benefits for people who exhaust 26 weeks of state benefits without finding work. Millen is in the same boat as two million people who could lose their benefits by the end of December.

Millen, 60, said she lost her job as a sales rep with a home building company in September 2009. She said she's burned through her savings during a dismal job search.

"It's so frustrating," she said. "You have to fill everything out online. Nobody talks to you in person. You're just shooting resumes out into a black hole."

Nationally, there are five unemployed vying for every available job. For all the hand-wringing over creating "uncertainty" for businesses, Congress shows little concern over the uncertainty it creates for people like Millen relying on a $300 weekly lifeline to pay the mortgage.

Over the summer, Congress spent nearly two months dithering over a reauthorization of the benefits, halting checks to 2.5 million people for several weeks. Though many expect Democrats to cut some kind of deal reauthorizing jobless aid before Christmas time, Millen is less optimistic.

"I'm worried sick this time," she said. "I have a sickening feeling they're gonna block 'em.... Or, I think they'll pass it but I think they'll dangle us back and forth another few weeks. They'll pass it for three months again so we'll go through the same damn thing in three months."

Comments

[realitytrumpsbull]

08:46 PM on 11/25/2010

I'm about to learn the in's and out's of the unemployment program, but my slogan will be 'have suitcase, will travel'(no, my name's not Paladin), but I do intend to find me another job. And, I think that's no small part of it, you gotta be willing to take what you can get, rather than trying to hold out for higher wages.

[Wolfiesmom1964]

02:20 PM on 12/02/2010

You are just now starting out????? Well, good luck to you! You will soon see that "you gotta be
willing to take what you can get" is an easy thing to say but a hard thing to do. Even the jobs that
you are "willing to take what you can get" are hard to come by if you have any skills at all. You'll
soon learn that you are over qualified for every one of those jobs that "you gotta be willing to take
what you can get." Best of luck in your NEW job search!

[Sarad]

06:35 PM on 11/24/2010

Just read about several corporations that are in the process of downsizing wages - using the threat of sending jobs overseas. So, maybe this is what management has been waiting for, rather than hand-wringing in uncertainty, they were waiting for the right time to put the screws to their employees. I've heard many of them have been sitting on cash, waiting, just waiting. Get wages low enough, S.S. and Medicare are going to suffer, too. The one thing that wasn't mentioned is lower prices for merchandise.

So, citizens of the United States of America, there goes the middle class - we will be henceforth serfs/peons to the master class. And there's not a damned thing we can do about it. Is there?

[YolandaJ]

11:28 PM on 11/24/2010

One thing would be to vote smarter than we've ever done before... I believe at some point our cocky government and the rich forget the people of this country rules everything... but it's easier said than done when "us' "we' the people do not come together in agreement... it's easier for the government to use the media to its advantage in hopes of covering stories that divide "us" as a people each election because its an easy,emotional method to use... Personally i'm tired of it, and its so yesterday..."we" are on our own, been for many years...Today is proof the middle class will soon be no more than that lower class...The government will pocket money from the middle class once this is done for themselves...its not about 'race' or 'gender' thats just an easy fear...its about money and who has the most holds the power over others... But "we" will sit back and watch everything "we" are told to be true, unfold as a lie, then it's too late... "We" have a lot of work and catching up to do with the government, but I don't see anyone crusading for that... Is the presidents 'race' that bothersome, that "we" would dig our own hole?... Why not wait it out til better comes along... I'm so tired of voting best of the worst...

[realitytrumpsbull]

08:48 PM on 11/25/2010

When companies overseas have employees that'll work for 1/3 of what they're paying here, our gooderservices just aren't economically competitive, anymore. And, that's globalization for you, and it's never going to revert to the Good Old Days. The Big Money is moving overseas for keeps.

[Carrie Krueger]

05:03 PM on 11/24/2010

Regarding the comment in the article, “Nobody talks to you in person. You’re just shooting resumes out into a black hole”, this points to a fundamental problem with job search technique. As other’s have pointed out, today’s job search really is about who you know. It is vital that job seekers embrace networking as a way to uncover the hidden job market. Shooting resumes out into a black hole is not the most effective way to job search and often leads to the kind of frustration that comes out in this article. Here is some help in getting started with networking: http://bit.ly/daM6Ac Avoid thinking you don’t need to network, it’s not used in your industry or you don’t have the personality for it. Commit to it, because it is the way jobs are found these days. Even more help with networking here: http://bit.ly/dbxPdm

Most important, do not give up hope or quit job searching. Even though times are tough, people are finding new jobs every day. Fight hard to make yourself one of them.

[MiddleMolly]

11:31 PM on 11/24/2010

The issue isn't whether or not someone networks, though one should exhaust whatever means possible to make connections to get a job.... but the basic issue is that there are 4 or 5 people for every job. If everybody was networking until the cows come home, there will still be 4 or 5 people for every job right now.

I know many people who have been looking for jobs in any possible way, networking, job boards, LinkedIn, whatever. Many still don't have jobs; some have "consulting" or temp jobs... which are good for a few months. And I don't think the people with temporary but full-time jobs are counted in the unemployment numbers, even though their situations are very precarious.

[wutzurbeef]

01:24 PM on 11/25/2010

Networking on the internet is how I found my last job. Posting my resume online at various sites, and letting them work in the background for me.Its kind of like bait on a hook floating in a virtual ocean. I was lucky to get a big bite. It also helps if you find out the name of a person in Human Resources of the Company you are applying to. This is most impressive to them that you TOOK the time to research that out. And it avoids the 'black hole' effect. Good luck to all.

[philosopherkingtomas]

04:51 PM on 11/24/2010

ask your republican rep for a job! or even better a mega Church.
wish it was Spring 2011, but, it is time to stop unemployment benefits.

[noob1]

01:18 PM on 11/24/2010

um, you are

[YolandaJ]

09:16 AM on 11/24/2010

I am a single mother of three...I have two jobs...one full and one part time...I was on unemployment earlier this year for two months...the unemployent benefits were not enough to pay for my bills and take care of my children...so I took the first job available which was with Wal-Mart part time...it equaled around the same pay as the unemployment bi-weekly...I then applied through several staffing agencies landing another part time job until I was able to land my current full time...I do not understand how a person can sit around on unemployment and make bill payments and take care of their families...I have come to the conclusion that people are not acting, as some may suggest, but do desperately need the money when nothing else is available...I was lucky to land my jobs simply because it's about who you know in these desperate times...But, a lady at age 60 landing a job during this? Come on people! I honestly would give my job away to her if I didn't have to feed my family too...It is so hard to enjoy my Thanksgiving after reading this...Just help the people already!...not doing anything would be so lame...I hate that some are ACTING because it makes good people have to suffer in all this...but i'd rather take my chances on these good people being indoors not out...

[TMMA]

12:16 PM on 11/24/2010

Your comment irks me:
"I do not understand how a person can sit around on unemployment .."
(SIT AROUND???)
as well as baffles me as to your logic given the first statement of yours I referenced:
"I was lucky to land my jobs simply because it's about who you know in these desperate times..."
(OK - so now it's about who you know!)

[montn2]

03:07 PM on 11/24/2010

Who you know -- networking is the BEST way to get a job in good and bad times. As to "sit around", I think you misunderstood her comments -- she simply could not afford to just draw unemployment to meet here obligations because it is not big enough.

[YolandaJ]

10:51 PM on 11/24/2010

I am sorry if I offended anyone...but the truth is the article did say and I quote "She said she's burned through her savings during a dismal job search," and she says "You have to fill everything out online. Nobody talks to you in person. You're just shooting resumes out into a black hole." I have never had trouble understanding what I read and I did not want to post that with my original post because dispite for whatever reasons she still needs help right now...but seriously how can you burn through your savings in a job search, when all you are doing is sitting at home submitting resumes into a black hole (wherever)?...This is clearly a contradtion to me...I personally feel she is not working because she has not found the job she wants instead of need...maybe she just knows how to do sales or something I don't know...but I do know it didn't make sense and she has been on unemployment now for over a year...I would rather for them to pass it for up to the max personally but what bothers me is what happens when the max runs out?...What's going to happen to this lady then?... I think it's time to get serious...Someone needs to have a plan when the extensions run out? Either way, I would rather for her to be sheltered long as possible rather than not...

[Mikdow]

12:22 PM on 11/25/2010

Yolanda, it's no mystery to me how someone can burn through their savings during a job search these days. Three months out of work and I'd be several thousand dollars behind and most probably in debt to my eyeballs.

You said it was time to get serious. Back in the sixties President Nixon proposed that all Americans be awarded a guaranteed national income. Other countries do it. That way everyone gets welfare: not just the rich, the poor and the corporate. What could be more fair?

And yes, if we can afford to give away billions of dollars to corporate America, we can afford a guaranteed income for all.

To the doubters: Research has shown that for the vast majority of people in Scandinavia this guaranteed income does not reduce productivity.

[murphy80]

05:54 AM on 11/24/2010

any of the badges here have a day job?

[montn2]

03:08 PM on 11/24/2010

retired.

[montn2]

03:38 PM on 11/24/2010

Murphy 80 -- got a job?

[murphy80]

05:47 AM on 11/24/2010

wonder why big shot harry reid is so silent right now.

happy thanksgiving.

[ran6110]

12:50 PM on 11/24/2010

Because he got another 6 years of easy money and won't have to listen to the riff-raff for another 6..

[dwright]

05:33 AM on 11/24/2010

you say "your days of employment are over", - what exactly does that mean?  Where is she supposed to go?  what is she supposed to do?

Can she come and love with you?  what an awful person you are.

[OSCPJ]

07:38 AM on 11/24/2010

What exactly does that mean.  Reality over emotions.  No amount of empathy, compassion or love is going to change the fact.  No amount of cruelity, greed or hate will change that either. 

Learn to live in the real world.  Hope is one thing, but action is the thing that gets things done.  The landscape has changed.  One can either adapt or perish.  Or one can bitch, whine, feel sorry forthemselves, but that isn't going to change the landscape.

You don't have to like the New Normal, but one better learn to survive in it.

It's always easier to live in the world of the internet, but eventually you have to deal with reality.

[polcomm]

06:19 AM on 11/24/2010

One of the main reasons she cannot find a job is because she is 60. I am 59. No one is going to hire me on a permanent basis when they can get someone 25 or 30, with the same qualifications and pay them less. Congress made a big mistake when they did not allow 55 and over to buy into Medicare. Many people our age are not going to find another job. We are waiting for the magic number "62" and look forward to getting the only future check we will ever receive. The unfortunate result is that while we wait for time to pass, the SS Administration will receive no more money from us, except maybe on a temporary basis. This will further lower the money in the pot for SS. While companies have record profits, workers have record low wages and that is not likely to improve. Dr. Krugman is right, there is no demand, and you can't have demand when people are waiting around for the only life line available to them. SS and Medicare. Welcome to 21st century America!

[TheCarCzarsPage]

09:49 AM on 11/24/2010

The Walking Dead in our midst.

[Imno Genius]

10:32 AM on 11/24/2010

...all true...OGFed..Officially Genius Fanned...

[clearlythinking]

08:52 PM on 11/23/2010

Newsflash - you ARE a pawn in a chess game. Now submit to the drug testing and breathalyzer so we can kick you off unemployment. That's how it is with the compassionate conservatives.

[parlimentMike]

08:58 AM on 11/24/2010

It's not chess. Either side could win at chess.

[OSCPJ]

09:45 PM on 11/27/2010

I already submit to drug testing as part of my employment.  Both in my daily work and then my one weekend a month, four weeks a year gig. 

Try again though.

[Fiona54]

07:15 PM on 11/23/2010

Arthur - great article. One suggestion though. You need to include the statistics on the 99ers in this mix. We are by far the larger group here and are also waiting for our bill S.3706 to be passed to provide a lifeline to the already destitute individuals who fall into this category. This needs to be addressed more in the media.

Thanks,

[OSCPJ]

07:39 AM on 11/24/2010

So what is your long term plan for dealing with benefits when they run out?  I'm sure after 99 weeks and plenty of time posting on the internet you have developed a plan for when benefits run out?

[Imno Genius]

10:36 AM on 11/24/2010

I bet oscpjGenius is collecting Social Security and Medicare...llike a tru Libertarian.

[smg71]

11:13 AM on 11/24/2010

Well I'm hoping that for the people on unemployment that they get an opportunity to actually have a job if the Republicans and Democrats can stop fighting in congress enough to actually get some work done.

I'd like to see them close the two offshoring loopholes that allow for our manufacturing and IT jobs to bleed overseas.

I'd like to see instead of rewarding a corporation for moving its jobs overseas that we tax them for it. You don't seem to get that when they do that, the tax revenue from their employees is lost to our economy as well.

I'd like to see government jobs put into effect for the people over the age of 55 who cannot find jobs in the private sector. This should appeal to you, they'll be doing work for their pay

I have a startup in the works for a web design business and at home computer repair business. But I'm not naive enough to think a 60 year old without computer skills would be able to do the same.

I haven't heard one Republican say "we don't want unemployment benefits" they said "I want them paid for." Not extending a tax break for the very rich pays for them. See, all done. Move forward.

[TheCarCzarsPage]

09:51 AM on 11/24/2010

99ers are people too!

[jennybb]

07:02 PM on 11/23/2010

ENOUGH 'spaining this horrific situation! OBAMA needs to get on the "bully pulpit" to get unemployment extensions rammed through congress for however long it takes. Then he needs to study up on FDR and how he got this country out of the Great Depression with the WPA, etc. Table the Dream Act, tax cuts for the wealthy, healthcare, end the war & stop giving aid to other countries.

[dwright]

05:35 AM on 11/24/2010

FDR was given a SUPER Majority of Democrats during his first mid-term - we gave Obama less to work with.  It is NOT his fault it is ours

[murphy80]

05:51 AM on 11/24/2010

no, the buck stops with potus. if he can't lead, then get out of the way.

start looking for a new candidate for '12

[smg71]

11:19 AM on 11/24/2010

There is really nothing the President can do without a supermajority. The few things he could have done, ie called the congress back from their various vacations to deal with the economic crises, he chose not to do. Executive Order and the use of the Presidential Veto only gets him so far, at some point the Republicans and Democrats need to start working with each other.

The press also has to start accurately reporting what is going on in the US. When I turn to ABC, CBS, NBC etc and see their top stories are who won Dancing with the Stars and John Travolta's new son, during a time of economic crises, it shows the news is now owned by wall street.

[trobts]

06:22 PM on 11/23/2010

WHAT is it that the thugs/tea'ers DON'T understand?
- There is 1 job for every 5 people (where do the other 4 people go for work?)
- Employers are refusing to hire people that have been unemployed (26 or more weeks)
- If you are just out of school (no experience) the employers don't want to hire you
- If you are between 40 - 64 yrs old you are too old (employers saying this) with too much experience
- The safety nets are disappearing and the private entities are maxed out & can't provide the
needs of those unemployed with no UI benefits
All of the above WHILE Corporations are posting the biggest profits in the lowest economy
The bible says 'teach them to fish' well, WE ALREADY KNOW HOW TO FISH, but the Corporations have closed THE FISHING HOLE.
AND for those out there holding down 2 jobs, why not give up 1 of your jobs to those that have NONE?

[blueeyedbull]

06:27 PM on 11/23/2010

They will never understand. I have asked that for Thanksgiving they give up bashing the unemployed for a day or two and be grateful they have a job and will have a nice meal. They just like being mean and uncaring.

[Andrew London]

06:11 PM on 11/23/2010

The whole POINT of government is to work TOGETHER for the will of the people. If these poo-tards cant put aside their differences to help Americans, then they should ALL be fired.
AMERCIANS DO NOT CARE ABOUT TAX CUTS FOR THE RICH....
This is a thought buried into our heads from Republican campaign finance supporters.
Americans want tax cuts for the MIDDLE CLASS and UNEMPLOYMENT EXTENSIONS.
Do what you are supposed to. Put aside your petty squabbling, and be a government of ADULTS.
Pass the extension

[TheCarCzarsPage]

09:57 AM on 11/24/2010

Agree!

[John Camp]

04:34 PM on 11/23/2010

I was unemployed last year, and I had to take my quality university degree and decade+ experience in upper management and make a choice. Do I sit around and wait, or do I take any Job I can find, and continue to look. I choose to take a retail Job, I was there a few months. The person who hired my at my current position with an aero-space company plainly said that if I hadn't taken that job I would not have been interviewed. When we are unemployed we need to put aside our pride at some point, and show that we are willing to work. Employers do take notice.

[INDIVIDUALTERRY]

05:39 PM on 11/23/2010

Sad but true.
The dumbest hiring practice i ever came across.

[Coco Lily]

05:56 PM on 11/23/2010

A lot of employers will only consider hiring someone is already working. They surmise that people who aren't employed, even if its in a minimum wage job, aren't really trying. This logic replaces the previous credit report screening. If you have a low credit score i.e. not paying bills due to unemployed status, then you're not considered a good candidate for hire.