unemployment

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The Price of Doing What’s Right

A man who was trying to do the right things, the honorable things, has been treated as the villain and punished as if he were the one violating rules and laws. And the system in place to stop such a thing has failed.

September 29, 2020

Alabama unemployment rate drops more than 2 points to 5.6 percent

The state’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate decreased to 5.6 percent in August, down from 7.9 percent in July, according to the Alabama Department of Labor. The figure represents 127,186 unemployed people, compared to 176,556 in July. It compares to an August 2019 rate of 2.8 percent, or 62,149 unemployed people. “August showed a larger drop … Continued

September 21, 2020

Labor force participation in Alabama’s Black Belt lags behind state, nation

Looking at the area over time, it’s clear that the Black Belt lags behind the rest of the state and country.

September 15, 2020

Unemployment in Alabama’s Black Belt outpaces rest of state both before and after COVID

Black Belt counties made up nine of the top 10 counties with the highest unemployment rate in July, and 16 of the top 20, according to data compiled by the university’s Education Policy Center.

September 9, 2020

Senate returns to Washington with no coronavirus aid package deal

The members of the U.S. Senate return to Washington D.C. on Tuesday for what is expected to be a tumultuous post-Labor Day stretch. Negotiations on another coronavirus relief package failed before the Senate recessed in early August and, as of Monday, there were no signs that the impasse has been resolved with the November elections … Continued

September 8, 2020

New unemployment claims drop, but percentage related COVID-19 increases slightly

New unemployment claims in Alabama fell by 10 percent from the prior week, but the percentage of those claims that were related to COVID-19 increased slightly during that time. There were 7,823 new claims filed between Aug. 23 and Aug. 29, down from the 8,676 filed the previous week, yet the percentage of claims related … Continued

September 3, 2020

Alabama Democratic Party: Mitch McConnell, Senate GOP are playing politics at the expense of families

The Alabama Democratic Party this week released a statement blaming Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Kentucky, and Senate Republicans for the inability of the two parties to come together to pass a bipartisan coronavirus aid bill before adjourning for the August recess. “We are furious. You should be too. Mitch McConnell and Senate Republicans are … Continued

August 12, 2020

Jones: Senate should not have left D.C. without deal on COVID relief bill

“The Senate never should have left D.C. without passing a deal to extend emergency unemployment and eviction moratoriums, to provide funding for schools to reopen safely, and to create a national testing and contact tracing plan,” Jones said.

August 11, 2020

Jones: Trump executive orders are “more for show than actual help for the Americans people”

Democratic Alabama Sen. Doug Jones had harsh words for recent executive orders that President Donald Trump signed in lieu of continuing to pursue a bipartisan legislative COVID relief package. Jones said that Trump’s executive orders extending coronavirus relief are “more for show than actual help for the American people.” “While the President is attempting to … Continued

August 10, 2020

Negotiations on a bipartisan coronavirus relief bill appear to have broken down

Both parties in Congress and the White House hoped to have agreement on a bipartisan coronavirus relief bill, but those hopes appear to have been dashed after a Thursday night meeting at the White House. The Washington Post reports that the White House and Democrats failed to reach an agreement late Thursday night on the … Continued

August 7, 2020