LUDINGTON – With 641,000 Michigan residents out of work, State Representative Dan Scripps (D-Leland) today blasted the state Senate for refusing to act on a House plan passed more than a year ago that will use more than $138 million in federal funding to support workers who are retraining for jobs in high-demand fields. If the Senate does not pass the plan soon, Michigan will lose out on that money, which is intended for unemployment benefits for those workers.
"For more than a year, the Senate has refused to act while more and more of our workers here in Northwest Michigan are struggling," Scripps said. "We could help so many families if the Senate would just step up and pass this common-sense plan. So many of our residents worked hard and played by the rules, yet still lost their job in this down economy through no fault of their own. Our displaced workers deserve the opportunity to get the training they need for new jobs in high-demand fields."
Scripps voted for a plan in May 2009 to support unemployed workers in declining industries who enroll in approved retraining programs to learn the skills they need for jobs in high-demand fields. The plan provides an additional 26 weeks of unemployment benefits so they can support their families while transitioning to new careers. Senate leaders have refused to act on the plan for more than a year, causing more and more displaced workers to fall behind.
The more than $138 million in federal funding available through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act would cover the unemployment benefit extension for at least the next two years. The Senate is refusing to take advantage of this funding even though there is no cost to the state.
In June, 641,000 residents reported being unemployed, and hundreds of thousands of Michigan workers will exhaust their unemployment benefits by the end of the year, according to the Michigan Department of Energy, Labor and Economic Growth.